


I'll be by your side

by Just_So



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: AU, M/M, Married Akaashi Keiji/Tsukishima Kei, Multi, OT4, Polyamory, Sexual Content, dystopian au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2021-02-20
Packaged: 2021-03-11 00:54:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 24,201
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28416450
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Just_So/pseuds/Just_So
Summary: “I’ll be by your side, love. It’s like falling asleep, and when you wake up, I’ll be there. I’ll by your side and all this, the nightmare, will be gone.”Tsukishima shook his head. At some point he had started shaking and sobbing uncontrollably. Akaashi pressed their forehead together and shushed him gently.“Kei, Love, I’ll be right there I promise.”...Tsukishima sat down and turned to face him with a frown.“You’re not Keiji.”“Nop, not Keiji. My name is Kuroo. Kuroo Tetsurou.”
Relationships: Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou, Akaashi Keiji/Bokuto Koutarou/Kuroo Tetsurou/Tsukishima Kei, Akaashi Keiji/Kuroo Tetsurou, Akaashi Keiji/Tsukishima Kei, Bokuto Koutarou/Kuroo Tetsurou, Bokuto Koutarou/Tsukishima Kei, Kuroo Tetsurou/Tsukishima Kei
Comments: 40
Kudos: 180





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is like a challenge for me 'cause I'm not an english native nor bilingual and still, I've tried to write it all in english. I hope it's not too bad.  
> .  
> Special thanks to my bro who helped me and beta-read the first chapters :3  
> .  
> It's mainly inspired by an childhood movie Origin Spirit of the Past, but I changed major parts of the plot to my liking.

Ruin. Silence. Devastation. More ruins. Darkness. Walls. Barbed wire. Towers. Streets. Garden. Towers. More streets. Giants billboards. Roads. Neons. Daylight in the darkness. 

Lights of the city are dancing in the night. It's vivid. Colorful. It's a breathtaking view, even for Tsukishima who’s been living in this part of Tokyo for a few years now. Behind the glass of his top floor apartment, it's like looking at a picture. A bright picture of a magnificent, and still very imperfect city. 

We’re in 2083. The world is chaotic, dystopian even. Countries have fallen. Lands have been submerged by oceans. Cities are in an advanced state of abandon. Population has decreased both because of wars, hunger and diseases. The survivors regrouped themselves in the biggest cities. Society had to adapt and form new administration systems. Humanity evolved to survive. Tokyo is one of the last cities of Japan. behind high walls, under control of police and laws, people are living as best as they can. Life is tough for those who are not providing useful services to the community. Tsukishima was once like them. An errand boy, who couldn’t even afford to have his own roof. He had to live with seven other persons, mostly strangers, in the worst Tokyo district. And now he was sleeping in silk sheets, in one of the highest towers of Tokyo, definitely in the most peaceful area.

How? Because he was smart. Smarter than most people. Always have been. He understood things quicker than others, analyzed them better, resolved problems easier. He had this sparkle in his eyes, the pure intelligence. 

‘’One day it will serve you right’’ his mother used to say. The good woman was right. Like she knew greatness awaited his son, she always looked at him with the certitude he was promised to better than a life as an errand boy.

So when, during one of his courses, Tsukishima had been accidentally mistaken for another and been taken to a scientific lab, he knew this was his chance. He resolved a complex formula on a whiteboard before returning to his life, but it was just the beginning. Few days later, the chief scientist,Takeyuki Yamiji, found him at his workplace and asked if he wanted to join a new program for the government. They would pay for his studies, even give him a better salary than he had, and in exchange, he'd had to work for the program after his graduation. 

Tsukishima didn’t hesitate. And he never regretted his choice, when they led him to his actual life at the age of 23. He was still a student, but four years ago he’d never imagined he would have found happiness in working his ass off day and night. Especially not since he had Akaashi by his side. 

Amazing, brilliant, loving and stunning Akaashi Keiji. His husband of two years. His lover of three. His crush of four. 

They met the day Tsukishima joined the research program. Akaashi was one of the top scientists despite his young age, only a year older than Tsukishima. With the man who recruited Tsukishima, Akaashi was in charge of the new program. They immediately matched. Akaashi saw the brute potential in Tsukishima and forced him beyond his strength to give the best of him. Then, they fell in love. Their love story was sweet and discreet as themselves. Four years seemed like a short time but in their world where any minute could be the last of peace, hesitation wasn’t an option. 

That’s how they ended moving in together after a few months of relationship, Tsukishima leaving his poor room and awful district, to live in Akaashi’s amazing apartment. The same where he was at the moment, staring distantly through the window. 

He didn’t hear the front door open and close, and felt Akaashi’s presence only when his reflection appeared on the glass. The shorter man slided closer to his husband and enveloped him in his arms. Tsukishima let himself melted into the embrace, appreciating the feeling of Akaashi’s breath on his neck. 

‘’Long day?’’ he asked. 

The arms around his waist tightened, and Akaashi noded lazily. 

’’I’m gonna make dinner. Go take a shower and change into something comfy’’. 

While talking, Tsukishima turned to face the shorter man and offered him a soft smile. Akaashi had his face buried in Tsukishima’s chest. Slowly, he raised it and his eyes locked with Tsukishima’s. 

‘’I’m not hungry’’. 

‘’After a full day at the lab you need to eat’’ Tsukishima said with little severity. ‘’You can’t live of onigiris and energy drinks.’’

‘’You’re the one to talk’’ 

And before Tsukishima could retort, Akaashi was lifting him with zero effort. Tsukishima immediately settled his legs on both sides of his husband and caught the collar of his shirt to steady himself. A smug grin had replaced the tiredness on Akaashi’s face. Tsukishima faked a pout and moved into a more comfortable position, drawing nearer his husband. Like two magnets, their lips found themselves and in an instant, they were gently kissing. 

It was tender, patient, very much them. But soon, Akaashi’s hands were sliding from Tsukishima’s tights to his ass and the blond struggled to suppress a moan as his husband started massaging it. In an instant, the kiss became hungrier and Akaashi carried them to the metal stairs that lead to the upper part of the apartement. 

Their bedroom was a large and open space just above the living room and the kitchen, on a mezzanine. They stumbled on the couch and Akaashi immediately moved to be on top of Tsukishima, devouring him with heated kisses. The blond offered moans and desperate need for more in return. His grip tightened in Akaashi’s hair as his husband pressed an open-mouthed kiss on his throat. 

‘’I love you Kei, I love you so damn much’’ he murmured against his skin. 

Tsukishima blushed but it was easy to hide it in the darkness that surrounded them. Only the dim light of the living room reached them, creating a cocoon where the gentles and firm touches matched the promise of another night of love. Lips trailed Tsukishima’s collarbone, then got lower and lower. 

‘’Keiji, l-love you’’ he finally said back before Akaashi kissed him again.

Gathering the blond in his arms once more, he praised him, caressed him, and prepared him for what was to come. Soon enough, they’re both naked and kissing again. Akaashi was now sitting on his heels, Tsukishima half resting on his thighs, their dicks in his hand pleasuring them skillfully. Tsukishima’s head was resting on his shoulder. His moans weren’t loud but in the silence of the apartement, it was enough to be the only noises, and music to Akaashi’s ears. Tsukishima thread a hand through the dark locks of his husband and nudged his nose against his neck. He let the musky scent fill his lungs. 

A thumbs caressed his lower lips, then two fingers and he allowed them to enter his mouth. Suddenly, Akaashi let go of his far too excited dick and flipped him over. Tsukishima sinked on top of the covers with a little laugh. Delicious sound. Akaashi was looking at him intently, with both hunger and unconditional love. He started to grind their hips together, his free hand sliding down and resting on his navel and tummy. In the meantime, the fingers now covered in saliva followed and found their way to his entrance. He put Tsukishima’s leg over his shoulder and slid in. Tsukishima’s back arced beautifully. 

Gently, patiently, Akaashi stretched him open, and fed himself from his panting breath. Then, a hand forced his chin to look up. Through blond eyelashes, Tsukishima’s gaze was determined. Akaashi knew this look. He turned his face into his palm and kissed the center. The ring he wore shined beautifully, matching his. 

Another sweet word. Another gentle sigh. Before he gripped his hips, and settled between the open legs. As they started kissing again, Akaashi pushed himself inside Tsukishima. It was delicate, sweet, but still full of passion. They took their time to reach their climax and Akaashi waited for the last drop of cum to fill Tsukishima before pulling out. 

They laid silent on the bed afterwards, arms and legs tangled. Tsukishima’s fingers were drawing circles on Akaashi’s shoulder. After a long time, or maybe less than a quarter, Akaashi’s voice broke the serenity of the room. 

‘’I’m hungry’’

‘’Told you’’

At that, Akaashi propred up on his elbow and looked down at his husband.

‘’Yes smart-ass, now let's get up before I take my dessert on you’’. 

As much as Tsukishima would have loved that, he was starting to be hungry and if he was, Akaashi was probably starving. They went for a quick shower, an innocent one, only pecks and light touches, and then went down to the kitchen, just under the bedroom, dressed in fresh pajamas. 

‘’Tomorrow we’re going to test the new generator.’’ Akaashi announced, sitting behind the counter. 

‘’Are you anticipating?’’

There was a silence, then Akaashi shrugged. 

‘’No. It’ll be fine. I’m confident.’’

Tsukishima turned to press a quick peck on Akaashi’s cheek. 

‘’You worked hard. It’s going to be fine.’’

.

Sirens. Red lights. Panic. Screamings. Running. Pushing. More Sirens. Alarms. A voice asking for all workers to evacuate to a safe area. 

Akaashi’s breath was short as he ran down a corridor against the crowd of terrified scientists. Of course it was a failure. Of course the experiment hadn’t succeeded. Of course some meteorological phenomenon would occur without warning and destroy half of the hard work he and his team had worked on for all those years. A shoulder hit him, throwing him against the wall with a muffled grunt. He ignored the pain and moved forward. He had to make it to the research room n°4, where Tsukishima was. The complex was crumbling. He didn’t know what exactly was happening, but end of the world could be a synonym. All his thoughts were directed to his husband and his safety. 

‘’Keiji!’’ 

Tsukishima’s voice pierced above the screams and the siren. Akaashi felt the relief flowing at him at the sight of blond curls near the end of the wall at the end of the hall. New strength spread to his legs and he pushed himself to where his husband was. They fell in the arms of the other but before they could exchange any word, Takeyuki-san was at their side, face deformed by fear. 

‘’We need to go quick. The generator is overheating, it’s about to explode.”

‘’There is an exit just above the staircase B.” one of their colleagues said, shaking like a leaf.

‘’Let’s go, we must evacuate.’’ 

Akaashi nodded furiously. His hand found Tsukishima’s and intertwined their fingers. Immediately, the blond hung on him stronger than he ever had. Following their mentor, they made their way to the staircase, trying to ignore the constant panic around them. They were half on their way when a violent explosion shook the whole building. Suddenly, the lights were out, replaced by the emergency ones. Akaashi put his free hand over Tsukishima’s and squeezed it to reassure the blond. He felt their bodies draw nearer instinctively. A loud rumble reverberated through the wall and suddenly, the ceiling started to fall behind and before them. Trapped, they had no choice but to follow Takeyuki-san to the first accessible door. They had just jumped through it, that the floor started to crack under them, killing three of their colleagues all at once. Tsukishima closed his eyes and let himself curl up against Akaashi. The shorter led them farther in the room, teeth so hardly clenched it hurted.

‘’We’re in lab 7’’ Takeyuki-san recognized as he made his way into the room. “We’re trapped!’’

The lab was an experimental room for a new sort of cryogenics machine. Some old and unclear project, half abandoned. The room was filled with special emergency lightning, all the systems connected to external sources, mainly solar systems. A giant cube, all metal and cables laid in the center of the room, buzzing lazily, indifferent to the whole mess around it. The few scientists spread in a circle around Takeyuki-san, looking at the room hesitantly, but mostly lost. No one understood what was actually happening, and no one knew what to do. They were all shaking and two were crying, desperate, scared. 

“We have to use it”. 

Tsukishima needed a minute before recognizing Akaashi’s voice. It was calm and fragil, but determined. 

‘’That’s madness Akaashi-kun” Takeyuki-san retorted alarmedly. 

“The building is falling apart, we’re trapped. Inside this we may have a chance of survival.” commented another scientist, one of Tsukishima’s partners in the program.

“Even if we found another exit, which we won’t, we’re on the 8th floor below the surface. We won't make it.” added another one.

Akaashi’s face was stoic, he was standing straight, looking firmly at his mentor and friend. Tsukishima understood very well that Takeyuki-san was concerned about using an incomplete device, but their options were getting fewer and fewer. The rest of the scientists with them were giving anxious looks at the cryogenics machine. Tsukishima did too. He was scared. 

No. Scared was an understatement. He was terrified. He didn’t want to die there, and definitely didn’t want Akaashi to die either. 

“Let’s do this.” someone said. 

Takeyuki-san finally nodded and gave quick and precise instructions. Before Tsukishima knew, a hand was grabbing him by the wrist and Akaashi was dragging him to one of the cryogenics chambers. 

“Keiji?!”

“”Get in.” 

Akaashi's voice was dominating, firm, but not in the way Tsukishima liked it. It was a scared-drenched, pressing voice. He pushed Tsukishima in the cabin, a one-person chamber with very elementary arrangement. Akaashi forced him to lay down as the device started to move up at the detection of a life-form.

“No! Don’t! Keiji don’t!” 

Tsukishima held his arms vigorously to stop his husband. He didn’t care he was digging his nails in the smooth skin. Akaashi was quickly tapping on the screen next to the chamber, preparing the cryopreservation. Tsukishima’s heart was racing, fear taking roots in his chest, a knot forming in his throat. 

“Please Keiji-” he pleaded, swallowing an ugly sob. 

It wasn’t like him to flinch like that. It wasn’t the kind of guy he was. He was salty and sarcastic, not fragile and whining. 

“Don’t leave me Keiji...”

Finally Akaashi looked at him. His usually apathetic face had been replaced by terror and doubt. He didn’t know. For the first time since they met, Akaashi didn’t know if this was the right decision. He knew courting Tsukishima had been right. He knew kissing him had been the right move. He knew asking him to be his husband had been the best decision ever. Right now, he didn’t know if putting Tsukishima in this half working device would save him. If he would see him again. Alive.

“Look” he said despite the deadweight that started to settle in his whole body. “Look at me Kei. I’ll be right there.”

He was pointing to another cryogenics chamber. Now that Tsukishima had seen it he couldn't look away. Akaashi had to slightly forced on his chin to make him cross their eyes once again.

“I’ll be by your side, love. It’s like falling asleep, and when you wake up, I’ll be there. I’ll be by your side and all this, the nightmare, will be gone.”

Tsukishima shook his head. At some point he had started shaking and sobbing uncontrollably. Akaashi pressed their forehead together and shushed him gently.

“Kei, Love, I’ll be right there I promise.”

Another shock somewhere in the building threatened the concrete structure of the walls around them. They heard more screams, more crashes and more destruction. Akaashi broke free of Tsukishima’s hold to finish the settings for his husband's cabin. He ignored his cries and initiated the program of cryopreservation. He pushed roughly against Tsukishima’s shoulders to force him to lay down and sealed their lips together. He caught his wrists to prevent him from grabbing him and kissed him with desperate energy. Then he straightened and took a step back. Tsukishima didn’t have the time to oppose that the door was closing, separating them. 

Last thing Tsukishima saw before darkness was the face of his husband, tears running down his cheeks.


	2. Waking up

Kuroo’s mornings were all similar. He would be awake before opening his eyes, to the sound of the iron sheets banging above his head because of the wind, and the cold bite of morning making its way under his blanket.

He’d sit in his bed for a minute, scratching his sore body, stretching his back and his arms, and then get up, dress up and go down to meet Kenma. The boy was where he had been last night when Kuroo went to bed. The only thing different were the pieces on his workbench and the tools around him. Also the blanket around his shoulders. Kuroo served himself a glass of water and prepared some hot drinks he brought to Kenma. 

“You slept late again.” commented his friend without even raising his head to thank him.

“At least, I sleep” retorted Kuroo before styling his indomitable hair. “Any improvement on this?”

Kenma shook his head and let down his tools to properly look at Kuroo. He had worst under-eye dark bags under his eyes and a resigned look each day passing. He gestured the machine he was trying to repair with a deep sigh.

“One of the main pieces broke when I tried to plug it. If I can’t replace it, it won’t work.” 

Kuroo leaned to examine the piece in question. 

“I’ll search for one like this” 

“Don’t take unnecessary risks,” Kenma warned.

“Me? Risks? Like I would”.

The deadpan look Kenma greeted him with was enough to remind Kuroo how reckless he could be sometimes. The younger boy switched his attention back on his work, and Kuroo left to prepare himself. He carefully stepped over an old engine waiting for its turn to pass on Kenma’s worktable, and grabbed his jacket. He put it on and made his way to the little kitchen-corner. Since the villagers had discovered Kenma’s ability to fix all sorts of engines and machines, their house became more a workshop than an actual living place. 

The main room, with the kitchen, where their family used to gather and eat together was now Kenma’s area, where he’d work and store all the pieces he needed for his repairs. The back, isolated by huge curtains, was Kenma’s room, where he and his parents had lived before they passed away. Kuroo’s family had a little shed just by the house, but since they died too, Kuroo and Kenma used it as a storage room. Kenma had offered to give half of his space to Kuroo in the back, but the older refused. He converted the attic into a small and cosy living area, despite being colder.

He didn’t need much more. He was glad he had something, and that Kenma’s family kept him around after his family passed away. It has been a few years now, they lived alone. Waiting for the food he had put into the pan to heat up, Kuroo drank his water looking distantly by the window. The sun was just rising, and a deep fog was wrapping the vale. 

“I’ll go to the old center today.” he warned Kenma. “I’ll find more useful pieces there. Do you need something in particular?”

“Ratchet wrench. Drill-bits too.”

“Easy. Anything else?”

“Well, the piece I just showed you.”

“OK. I’ll be back for dinner, but don’t skip lunch.” Kuroo declared preparing a plate of food for Kenma, puting the rest in a box he stuffed in his bag, along with a bottle of water. 

He gave his food to his friend and put on his safety boots. He gathered his equipment, tightened his belt, and zipped his jacket. Only when he was about to open the front door, Kenma rose and made his way to him. He gave him two torchlights he had repaired, letting Kuroo test them before he hung one to his belt and put the other in his bag.

“Be careful.” Kenma said stolidly. “Don’t go too deep alone.” 

Kuroo nodded and with a soft wave of the hand, he left the house.

.

2198.  
Nothing remained of the old world. No more countries. No more government. Humanity had regrouped into small colonies, living in villages. The Fukurodani Group was the last remainder of what was once Japan. They were the fusion of few villages, and reformed the old living way. They had schools, shops, hospitals and military forces. The system was far less advanced than the one from before the Switch, but compared to the small village where Kuroo and Kenma grew up, it was like the industrial era versus middle age. They’re in control of the basic resources like the water and the condiments. Being at the center of old Tokyo, Kuroo’s village provided them with machines and equipment from the old world, in exchanges for those resources.

As a scavenger, Kuroo often wondered what it was like to live in a world with electricity, free access to clean water, and decent houses. Not that he discarded the actual world. He never knew the other one, and for all he knew, it was shitty enough that the people of that time destroyed it. At least, now humanity remains. Of course it wasn’t idyllic. It was a hard life, and it was harder when you’re alone. But Kuroo was not. He had Kenma. He dug day after day for the Fukurodani Group of course, but he was also able to bring home useful stuff to repair, and adding this new income to the one he gained from the Fukurodani Group, life was fine. Just fine. Not amazing, not better, just… fine.

All he needed was to dig in the ruins of the old world, get back to the surface and then sell his findings. With this idea in mind, he crossed the village on a light foot and took the path to the ruins. They started right under his feet, the village had been built on some old building, but the interesting parts were down the hills.

Tokyo was nothing of what the city once was. The earthquakes redrew the landscape since the Switch. The buildings had fallen. The vegetation had taken back its right upon the lands, as the ocean did with the bay. The ruins of the old city started at the foot of the village, and extended for miles. Far over them, when the weather allowed it, one could see the shadow of the Fukurodani garrison, like the Babel Tower. Technically it was on land, but it was so far, that usually, even when the sky was blue and the sun shining, it was like the town was floating on the ocean.

Kuroo didn’t see it that morning as he made his way to the ruins. He spotted a group of scavengers, about 3km away, and decided not to join them. One rule between the scavengers: do not impinge another scavenger's territory.

Kuroo knew it better than anyone. Apart from the scavengers from his village, who were decent persons, it was usual to cross paths with wanderers, ruthless scavengers. They were brutals, lawless men. He had once met a group of four who beated him to shit to steal his findings. Only the arrival of a fifth one had saved him that day. The man had stopped his partners, reminding them Kuroo was only a child. He was around 16 at that time. He had been left alone, bleeding, sobbing, robbed and scared. Since that day, he’d always been careful not to go where other scavengers could be. From time to time he would join scavengers of his village when it was to go deeper than normal, or for bigger machines. But most of the time he went digging alone. That meant going farther into the ruins of Toyko to make sure it was safe.

Like today.

He found a crack in a building half buried in the ground. He slipped through it and lit his torch. He directed the beam first to the ground to check the safety of the path, then lit up the walls. Vegetation was mixed to the old concrete. Kuroo made his way to another crack which led to an opening, 4 meters below. Without hesitation, he jumped and landed smoothly, before sliding on a natural slide. He arrived in a large area brightened by a hole in the roof. Which was actually not a roof but the ground of an office floor. Kuroo quickly checked his surroundings before walking to the edge of the platform he was on. One glance down and he smirked. The real roof, 20 meters below, was covered in old office equipment and furnitures, including computer equipment and electronic devices.   
In one sharp movement, Kuroo unfolded the rope attached to his belt, tied it to a pillar and jumped into the void. The speed was exhilarating but he knew he was safe. His rope was a special device Kenma had created for him. When he saw himself reaching the floor, he pressed a button and the rope slowed before stopping its unwinding. From there, Kuroo manually unfolded it until his feet reached the pile of old engines. He gave his rope some slack and started digging.

His researches went well. Soon, his bag started to gain weight. He had found a box full of old tools and happily took the drill-bits and the ratchet wrench for Kenma. He was now looking for the piece Kenma had shown him this morning. Just when he thought he had found it, he heard the cracking above him. He felt some rubble falling on his shoulder. He didn’t even look around before jumping away. He pressed the button of his rope and felt himself getting lifted in the air. The next moment, a part of the wall he was digging next to not a minute ago, crumbled, taking a huge part of the platform in its fall. The ancient roof opened in half, revealing 50 meters of void under it. A deadly fall if Kuroo hadn’t jumped away in time.

He let out a sigh of relief, thanking silently his reflex and Kenma’s rope. His relief was short-lived. The pillar holding his rope abruptly felt apart. Kuroo let out a scream. He had nothing to hold to. In a flash of lucidity, he gathered his rope and sent it to the closest surface, hoping it would hook to something. Anything. And it did. The rope clipped in a rift, halting Kuroo’s fall violently. He was thrown against the nearest wall far too quick to be painless. His side violently hit the wall. He almost lost consciousness at the impact. He hadn’t had time to breathe that his rope broke. There he was, falling again. This time, he was knocked unconscious when his body met a cold and rough surface.

He didn’t realize it was water as his body sank down the underground stream. 

**.**

Kuroo woke up a long time after his fall. He had no idea what had happened to him. He just knew he was in the darkness. Complete and suffocating darkness. He sat up (he could sit up nice), and quickly checked himself. He felt pain in all his left side and could only imagine the bruises his fall had left on his skin. Thankfully nothing was broken. Then he groped to find his bag. Fortunately, he still had it. He took his second light torch and let a deep sigh of relief when it lit up. He rose and let the beam wander around him to explore the new area. As half of his body was still wet, and his feet wading in the water, he had no problem finding the stream that brought him there. But it was too dangerous to try to swim. He didn’t find any path following it so he turned to the opposite direction and started to go deeper in the darkness. There were no other sounds apart from his wet steps, his breathing, and a slight but muffled buzz. He was staring at the darkness, eyes open bigger than ever, hoping to perceive anything.

All of sudden, a crack under his boot threw a shiver down his spine. He looked down and felt his knees go weak. He just stepped on a skull. An old, really human, skull. He jumped aside, holding a scream, but that made him walk on more and more skeletons. His heart started racing crazy. Fear hosted itself in his chest and all he could see was bones, skulls, and more bones. He tripped on something and suddenly lost his balance. He fell right on a skeleton. This was too much. With a shriek he pushed himself away. But instead of landing back on a straight ground, his body fell down a clod. He curled himself to protect his head and neck from any impact. The lightorch followed him closely until they were both stopped by a metallic wall.

Kuroo took back his torch as soon as he felt his fall had ended and looked around nervously. His gaze was attracted by a sudden light source and he felt relief overwhelmed him at the sight of a crack in the farthest wall, with a path to the outside. 

“Thank god..” 

He put his hand on the wall beside him to lift himself. Imagine his surprise, when the said wall suddenly lit up. Kuroo froze instantly as a beam was scanning his hand. Out of nowhere, a voice like nothing he ever heard before pierced the silence.

“ _Human detected. … Shutdown of the Cryopreservation system. … Time of Revival. … Release of the occupant_.” 

A distant thud echoed against the abandoned walls of the cave. Darkness came back. For just a moment, Kuroo thought he had dreamt. But when the wall broke open in front of his eyes, he realized he was not. Then, he appeared. Surrounded by white lights, stood an angel. A tall man with short blond hair spread around his face. He had serene features, like if he was just sleeping. A pair of glasses stood on top of his nose. His clothes were like nothing Kuro had ever seen. He wore a withe shirt, with buttons under some sort of hoodie but in a matter Kuroo didn’t know. His trousers were a jean, that much Kuroo knew. He had seen old advertising about that in the ruins. Some sort of odd necklace was hanging around his neck, with a card at the tip.

As soon as the wall opened, something like a pressurization system went off, releasing vapor mist. Kuroo hadn’t finished to watch in amazement the apparition, that the boy started falling onward. He caught him before he hit the ground but the sudden weight, despite the boy being anomaly light, made him lose his balance and he fell on his ass, the angel on him.

He took an instant, a long minute, to process what just happened. Slowly, he tilted his head in order to see the beautiful face of the stranger once more. And beautiful was not strong enough to describe the guy. Kuroo had never met someone with such pale skin (even Kenma, and his friend almost never went out of their house). Having him lying down on him, Kuroo was also able to smell him. It was startling as well. It was a smell Kuroo never breathed and it was nice.

Then, he gently moved the boy in his arms to adjust his posture. Their skins brushed and Kuroo found himself wanting to touch more. It was so soft. He quickly pushed away this odd idea and checked the man’s pulse. He breathed better once he found it. His eyes wandered on the stranger and went back on the weird necklace. He grabbed the card and examined it. There was a picture of the guy in his arm, next to some writings. Kuroo winced. He didn’t know how to read. He never learnt. He traced the characters with his thumb, wondering their meaning. 

“Kei-ji?”

The cracked voice startled Kuroo who let go of the card and looked down to the man in his arms. Long, blond eyelashes fluttered before gold honey orbs stared at Kuroo. The body started to move on its own and the weight loosen on Kuroo as the man sat down and turned to face him with a frown. 

“You’re not Keiji.” 

“Nop, not Keiji. My name is Kuroo. Kuroo Tetsurou.”

He offered his hand which the blond stared at for a minute before taking. Only then Kuroo noticed the ring on his annular. 

“I’m Tsukishima Kei. Did you see someone els-'' started the blond, cut short by a strong cough. 

“Here” offered Kuroo after digging for his water bottle in his bag. “Take a sip”.

Tsukishima nodded and accepted the bottle. He went for half of it but Kuroo didn’t mind.

“Go slow. There’s plenty. … How did you get here?” he asked. 

Tsukishima slowly stopped drinking and put the bottle on his upper thighs. He seemed to think about the question before looking around them. 

“Where are we?”

“In the Tokyo ruins. Probably a low part of them.” explained Kuroo checking the cave. 

“We’re still in Tokyo…Wait. Ruin?"

Kuroo nodded. 

“What- How long…” 

Cutting himself, Tsukishima suddenly tried to get up. His body half obeyed and Kuroo had to catch him again before he fell. 

“Easy! You just woke up from this glowing box. Whatever happened to you, you’re not as fresh as you think you are.”

Tsukishima let himself get supported by Kuroo and looked at the glowing box.

“Keiji...” 

“What?”

“Have you seen someone else?! Anyone?! Keiji is supposed to be here too.”

Without giving a voice to Kuroo, Tsukishima pushed himself toward the cryogenics machine and followed his silhouette through the darkness. Kuroo followed him ready to catch him at any sign of weakness. The blond suddenly stopped in his tracks. Kuroo lighted up the space in front of them with his torch to understand why. Tsukishima’s hand had reached the part of the machine where it was shredded, the other half missing. 

“Your friend was in that thing too?” Kuroo asked, feeling bad for the blond.

Tsukishima didn’t answer. Kuroo didn’t need him to. He clearly remembered the skeletons up there. Would it be better if he told Tsukishima about it? No, the guy was clearly experiencing some traumatizing awakening, he didn’t need to add the loss of his friends above. 

“Come on” he said “We need to get out. I can take you to my village.”

Tsukishima didn’t move. Kuroo stepped forward and froze. Tsukishima was livid, biting his lower lips so hard in a failing attempt to hold the tears escaping his eyes. Kuroo didn’t give a second thought before taking a step forward and pulling him into a hug. He didn’t know him. He had no idea if it was OK. So at first, he feared Tsukishima would push him away. But no, the blond didn’t. On the contrary, slowly, he raised his hands and grabbed Kuroo’s shirt before burying his face in the crook of Kuroo’s neck. They stayed like this for as long as Tsukishima needed to calm down before Kuroo slowly patted his back.

“We need to move. I don’t know what time it is and nights are unsafe out of the village.”

He felt more than he heard Tsukishima’s agreement. They parted without another word. Kuroo gathered his water bottle and led Tsukishima to the exit he previously spotted.   
As the fresh wind messed with his hair, Kuroo never felt so happy to see the sky again. The sun was still high but Kuroo knew better. He turned to show Tsukishima what path they should take but met with an angel once more. In the daylight, the blond was even more stunning. He was taking a moment to adapt to the harsh light, giving Kuroo the time to realize that they were almost the same height. Tsukishima might be a little taller, but not by much. His legs were going ad infinitum, giving his slim figure a natural elegance. Kuroo was so drowned in his contemplation he didn’t realize Tsukishima switched of behavior. The blond had finally stepped closer to Kuroo on the terrace made of ruins, and was looking at the desolate landscape around them. 

“What the fuck...” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope my english is not too bad :') reviews are appreciated to improve if needed!


	3. Looking around

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm still confused with ao3 editing I'm sorry if it's weird :'(

Kuroo Tetsurou was very different from all the people Tsukishima had ever met. He was obviously curious towards Tsukishima, but unlike most of what people would have done, he didn’t push his own questions on the blond. Instead he was answering all the interrogations Tsukishima had. He was patient, careful with every word to make sure the blond would understand him right. He explained the _Switch_ , the current state of the world, his job and why he was doing it. Thanks to him, Tsukishima quickly had a picture of the situation. Being patient and willing to answer all specific questions Tsukishima had, made Kuroo Tetsurou very different from all the people Tsukishima has ever met. 

Of course there was his general appearance to complete the portrait. The way he was dressed was unsettling. He wore basic baggy black pants who digged in a pair of high boots, themselves protected by a pair of security shoes. Few tools hang on the belt circling his hips, clicking at each step he took. His red and black jacket had different layers. The first one was covering his whole chest; like an armor. Then a weird matter covered his arms only and was kept steady thanks to the two bonding with fixing clips on his chest. A third layer, like an oversized transparent coat probably served as a rain protection. 

So basically, the guy had some techwear fashion preferences, ok that was fine. But Tsukishima doubted it was for style. Especially with the birdnest he had for hairs. Not that he was ugly. Tsukishima wouldn’t deny Kuroo was fairly attractive with his raven hair, brilliant hazel eyes and nice voice. But when you’re married to the most beautiful person earth has ever seen, any Adonis would be pale in comparison. Person you had no idea if they were alive. 

As Tsukishima discovered the world out of the cave, he had come to an unpleasant conclusion. The world he knew was long gone. The people he hung out with were probably dead. Kuroo had told him it was 2198. The cryogenics machine where he had slept for the last 115 years (how this engine had worked that long and that well was a complete mystery to Tsukishima) had been halved in two by some unknown force of nature. The part where Akaashi was supposed to be had disappeared. Tsukishima was certain his husband had managed to get into one of the cryogenics cabins too. He had to. 

But what if he hadn’t? Was he dead on the day the lab was destroyed? Or worse, had he successfully fallen asleep in the machine but woke up earlier? If so, how many years earlier? Maybe he already died of age. 

Tsukishima furiously shook his head, refusing to believe he had lost his lover forever. He jumped on another rock, steadied himself and looked up to where Kuroo was above him. The guy was jumping from one rock to another like a cat. Tsukishima was torn between little admiration and apathetic judgement. He was not as quick as the raven-haired man despite his long legs. He didn’t know the land, so he watched carefully all his steps. Kuroo had this agility and easiness to evolve in this environment, proof he was used to it. The raven stopped on an ancient access ramp to wait for him. 

“You’ll want to watch your steps over here” he warned but too late. 

Tsukishima tripped anyway. Kuroo failed at holding his laugh. Ugly, hyena-like laugh. Tsukishima shot him a cool glance. 

“Sorry” the raven said, not sorry at all. 

Tsukishima didn’t say anything and used his hands to climb up the next massive rock to join Kuroo who was really agile as a cat. Or was he a monkey? The latter offered his hand to help him but the blond ignored it. Once he got there, he was out of breath. Kuroo noticed it and decided to take a break. He sat on top of the rock and dug his box of food out his bag. He offered it to Tsukki with no hesitation. The blond stared at it then at Kuroo.

“Isn’t this your food?”

“It will fit better in the stomach of a guy who hadn’t had a snack for a hundred years. Don’t worry, I’ve eaten this morning”.

It was a lie, but Tsukki couldn’t know about it. Then the blond did something the other hadn’t anticipated. He used the fork Kuroo had planted in the food, to create two parts. He ate his slowly, appreciating each bite, before giving his part to Kuroo. The raven accepted it with a grin. 

“So, Tsukki, how old are you?” 

“Who are you calling Tsukki?”

“The root over there obviously” Kuroo pointed at some root making its way along a metal bar. 

Tsukishima stared deadpan at him.

“Tsukishima is too long to say.” Kuroo added.

“But it's my name. You wouldn’t like it if I was giving you nicknames when we don’t know each other.”

“Nah, I wouldn’t mind. You can call me whatever you want” Kuroo said with a wink and Tsukishima snorted. 

“Fine rooster head.”

“Woah! Mean!” 

Instinctively Kuroo’s hand went to flatten his hair. Tsukishima didn’t hide his smug grin. 

“Won’t stop me from calling you Tsukki!”

“I should have known the first person I met in this time would be an idiot.”

“Calling your savior an idiot isn’t really nice Tsukki”

“You barely saved me. If anything, you provoked my awakening.”

“For which you’re very welcome.” Kuroo said, smiling dumbly at him.

Tsukishima rolled his eyes but didn’t object. He was indeed thankful to Kuroo. It was nice to feel alive after experiencing the destruction of the labs. Even 115 years later. But for him it was just a few hours ago.

“23.”

Kuroo looked up at him trying to figure out the mystery of the said numbers. Tsukishima sighed.

“I’m 23.”

“Oh you’re 4 years younger than me! You look older.”

“That’s the glasses. I get that a lot.”

“Maybe. Probably the ring too.”

Tsukishima startled at the mention of his alliance and put his hand on it, reassured by its presence.

“You’re married?” 

Kuroo’s question sent a wave of unpleasant feeling in Tsukishima’s head. Memories. Akaashi’s tears as they were separated. 

“Don’t answer. I’m sorry I shouldn’t have asked.”

Once more, Tsukishima was taken aback by Kuroo’s nice behavior. 

“Yes” He answered after a minute of uncomfortable silence. 

As much as he didn’t know Kuroo, the guy was the first person he met there. He was not the kind of person Tsukishima would go around with, but he wasn’t horrible. Plus, he sincerely seemed concerned about Tsukishima’s fate. Still the blond didn’t elaborate on the matter. Kuroo got the hint and changed the subject. He pointed to Tsukishima's card, swallowing his last bite of food.

“What’s written there?”

“My ID?” Tsukishima was surprised that Kuroo grew curious about such an insignificant object. “It’s my card to gain access to the labs where I’m- where I was working.”

“Yeah but what’s written?”

Tsukishima took it off and held it out for Kuroo. The raven suddenly seemed unsettled and looked nervously at the card then at Tsukishima.

“Forget it.” 

Tsukishima didn’t insist and put it back around his neck. It seemed useless to have this now, but everything was too fresh. He needed to hold back to some part of his life. 

“You were working in labs?” Kuroo’s question tore him away from his memories. 

“I was.”

“Like a scientist.”

“I’m still a student but yes.”

“So you’re like, super smart?”

“You’re asking a lot of questions.”

“You’re asking none.” 

Tsukishima’s forehead furrowed as he grimaced. Kuroo had this disruptive ability to retort to anything. 

“We could just not ask questions.”

“Wait, you’re not curious?” Kuroo's surprised face made Tsukishima's lips threaten to turn into a smile.

“Not really. You don’t look that interesting.”

“Rude. Again. Tsukki you’re a meanie.” 

“Thank you, I had never noticed,” Tsukishima replied sarcastically. 

This made Kuroo laugh louder, his atrocious laugh sending a shiver down Tsukishima's spine. 

“Well you’re making me curious.” Kuroo declared, making Tsukishima shift uncomfortably. “It’s not everyday I dig out someone from the past!”

“You make it sound like I’m a dinosaur.”

“A what?”

Kuroo’s confusion drew Tsukishima over the edges and he wasn’t able to hide his shock. his eyes went wide and his mouth opened into a scandalized “ _what_ ”. Kuroo’s face turned pink, as shame of his ignorance entered his mind. 

“You don’t know what a dinosaur is?” repeated Tsukishima still not over his shock.

“I-... no? It’s some sort of old artefact your people used to share information?”

“No! It’s nothing like a phone!” Tsukishima exclaimed.

“I know what a phone is!” Kuroo fought back with a pinch of amusement at Tsukishima’s investment. “Your dinosaur thing just sounds like another complex device.”

“Dinosaurs were magnificents creatures who lived millions of years ago!”

“Oh so they’re dead? They are nothing like you then.”

“We used to excavate their fossils.” Tsukishima explained. “Like you did with me.”

“Oh. Then you’re very much a dinosaur.”

Tsukishima opened his mouth to retort but realized Kuroo had a point somehow. He pinched his lips and shrugged to hide his embarrassment. When Tsukishima was annoyed, he had this habit to pout. It was subtle, and only Akaashi seemed to notice every time he did that, but right there, Kuroo saw it, and felt a smile crept on his face. He couldn’t help but think “ _how cute_ ”. 

After a short time of chit-chatting (mostly Kuroo talking and Tsukishima grunting), they got up and headed to Kuroo’s village. As they were approaching the market area, Tsukishima went completely silent and Kuroo realized he was giving curious glances around. So the raven-haired man pointed specific places to him, explaining their use. They avoided the center of the village (Kuroo didn’t want to deal with the villagers' questions about Tsukishima, and Tsukishima was grateful because he didn’t like attention) and went down a trail and then a shortcut to Kuroo’s house. The place was very simple but also, completely new to Tsukishima. They had to follow a narrow path to reach a larger road. At the end of it, the house stood in the middle of nowhere. An ancient tōri stood just in front of it, its painting long gone, but the wood solid. The house itself was a mix of stones and wood. The roof was made of metal sheets, some banging in the wind. On one side of the house, where a lean-to threatened to fall any time soon, many engines and machines were piled up, protected from the weather by a simple tarp. 

Tsukishima paused at the front, letting Kuroo go inside alone. He heard him happily talking to someone. After long minutes, he took a deep breath, then pushed the door a bit to step inside. His eyes needed a little adjustment before he discovered a simple room, a bit messy, but cosy. Kuroo was near the right wall, just under a mezzanine in some sort of workshop place. The person he was talking to was half hidden by his body but Tsukishima immediately noticed the tools in his hands. Kuroo turned to him and gestured to him to come closer.

Tsukishima nodded and really entered the house, muttering “ _I’ll disturb you_ ”, closing the door behind him, before approaching Kuroo and the other person. It was a guy, a short, very tired, guy, with bleached hair, like a pudding, wrapped in some sort of giant red blanket. His cat sort of eyes look up and down at Tsukishima before slightly tilting his head forward as a greeting. 

“Tsukki, meet Kenma. Kenma this is Tsukki!” Kuroo introduced excitedly.

“It's Tsukishima, rooster head. Tsukishima Kei.”

Kuroo raised an unimpressed brow, keeping his smug grin plastered on his face. Kenma gave a small smile at the nickname.

“Nice to meet you Tsukishima-san. I’m Kenma Kozume. Kuroo gave me a short resume of your situation. You’re welcome to stay with us.”

“Thank you Kenma-san, I really appreciate.” 

“Hey, why are you so polite to Kenma but make fun of my hair!” Kuroo grumbled, crossing his arms on his chest. 

Tsukishima shrugged and answered with a dry smile.

“Yeah I wonder why.”

The sarcasm didn’t offend Kuroo who snorted before offering to show the house for Tsukishima. The blond followed diligently. It was quick. The main room, the kitchen-corner, the toilet at the back, Kenma’s chamber, and the bath in a small room just by Kenma’s working space. 

“And up there, it’s my room.” Kuroo pointed finally.

Tsukishima stared at the ladder pensively. 

“We need to do something for your clothes Tsukki” commented Kuroo turning on his heels to dig in a drawer. “You can’t wander around dressed like that.”

Tsukishima’s eyebrows twitched and he instinctively put his hands on his hoodie. 

“My clothes are just fine.” he said vividly.

Kuroo looked up and Tsukishima suddenly felt very small under the intense gaze of the man.

“Sure, they’re great.” Kuroo admitted. “For a dinosaur.”

Tsukishima rolled his eyes and decided to ignore Kuroo’s awful teasing. The raven-haired choosed some pieces of his clothing (Tsukishima would never fit in Kenma’s) and handed them to him. Tsukishima accepted them, not without a nasty comment about the bad fashion sense, and Kuroo let him change in peace. 

At first, Tsukishima stared at the pieces of clothes to figure out how to put them on. When he finally did, he took him a good damn minute to actually adjust them. The dark red pants were tight on his calves and just a bit loose on his thighs. Multiple pockets were placed symmetrically on the upper part of the pants. Two long straps felt from the waist just above the knees. The undershirt was simple, but Tsukishima struggled a bit with the jacket. It was a very minimalist cloth at the first look but what he thought was accessories (and had decided not to wear) were actually some kind of leather harness sewn to the fabric. He had no choice but to put it on and adjust the harness. He traded his sneakers for a pair of heavy low boots with zippers on the front.

Once he finally was good to go, he sighed. That was very unlike him to wear that kind of clothes. He felt ridiculous. He considered staying in the back room until mankind disappeared but came to the conclusion Kuroo would come check on him before that. So he reluctantly went back to the main room. Kenma was perched on his seat, focused on his work. Kuroo was trying to clean a bit. He had removed his jacket in the meantime revealing his muscular back to the world. He wore a tight sleeveless high turtleneck which did very little to hide the six packs torso. His bare arms were flexing every time he bent to grab some heavy objects. Tsukki quickly looked away. He wasn’t checking out a stranger. A kind, very helpful stranger. 

Kuroo finally noticed him and let out a whistle. 

“Look good on you Tsukki.”

“I like my clothes better.”

Kuroo gave a soft laugh at that. Tsukishima quickly made his way to Kenma, wondering what the shorter boy was doing, and needing an escape from the awkward sensation Kuroo’s laugh brought to his chest. Kenma was screwing two metal pieces of an old heater. Tsukishima looked at him working for an instant before the pudding haired guy clicked his tongue and tilted his head to inspect the inside of the heater. 

“Shit.”

“What’s wrong?” 

“I don’t get it. I plugged all the cable and fixed the systems. I know it's an old heater but those kinds are supposed to work without electricity.” Kenma said to answer Tsukishima’s question. 

The blond rose from his seat and got closer to Kenma who showed him where he thought the problem came from. Tsukishima hummed, thinking, and in a fast motion, changed two settings of cables. Then, he removed a metal piece to add another, then replaced it on top. He did few other changes like this under Kenma’s attentive eyes.

“Here. It should work now.” he finally said. 

Kenma frowned but tried to start the engine. His eyes widened as the machine started to slightly buzz. Kuroo had approached behind them. They already could feel the heat spread from the machine. Kenma shot an impressed glare at Tsukishima.

“Tsukki you’re so smart!” Kuroo proudly said. 

“That wasn’t that difficult.” the blond objected. “All the systems like that are the same.”

“Could you teach me how to do that?” 

Kenma’s question surprised Tsukishima who suddenly felt very aware of the difference of knowledge between him and the men. 

“I can write down the global process if you want.”

Kenma’s shoulders fell slightly and Tsukishima felt Kuroo stiffen behind them. 

“It wouldn’t be of any use. I don’t know how to read.”

It was Tsukishima’s turn to be surprised. 

“Sorry I assumed you…”

“It’s OK.” Kenma objected. “We don’t know how to read nor write but it’s not like we need that to work.”

Tsukishima nodded, muttering another apology. Suddenly, he understood Kuroo’s reaction earlier when he handed him his card. He felt shame creping on his neck as an uncomfortable heat spread on his cheeks. Kuroo didn’t lose time to change the subject, like if it was a second nature for him to soften the atmosphere.

“Who’s hungry? I’m starving. I’m gonna do a grand meal today! Tsukki, just stay with Kenma and teach him some of your scientist tricks. I’m gonna go to the market.”

The two others agreed silently and Kenma started showing other specific devices he had struggles with. When Kuroo came back, a few hours later, Tsukishima was lost in a complex explanation, Kenma drinking his words. Kuroo didn’t bother them and went straight to the kitchen-corner. He started cooking to the rhythms of their voice. 

In the end, he still barged in their conversation to announce the time to eat. They sat together at the little table by the main heater.

“So Kenma, has Tsukki been a good teacher?”

The shorter man nodded, his mouth full of rice. It wasn’t everyday they could afford rice. Kuroo had probably paid far too much but it was worth it. They even had fish! And Kuroo was a great cook. Tsukishima was actually very impressed, eating with appetite. He never was a good eater. Akaashi often forced him to sit and have a decent meal, not letting go if the blond hadn’t finished his plate. The memory overwhelmed him with sudden sadness. Slowly, he put down his chopsticks, no more listening to Kuroo and Kenma’s conversation. The latter noticed the change in his behavior. Kuroo did too. 

“You don’t like it Tsukki?” he asked nervously. 

Tsukki snapped out of his thoughts and shook his head.

“Not at all, it’s good.”

There was silence after that, then Kenma said.

“You don’t need to force yourself Tsukishima-san. It’s okay, we get it if you’re not feeling well.”

Tsukishima didn’t say anything. He didn’t know what to say.

“We can’t understand what you’re going through” Kuroo’s voice had toned down, into a really sweet, soothing one. “If we can do anything, just tell us.”

“I’m… kinda lost to be honest.” Tsukishima admitted.

He wasn’t one to overly express himself, but the recent changes in his life had to do with the fact he wanted to talk to Kuroo and Kenma. 

“I would think you’re a creep if you weren’t.” Kuroo joked. 

Tsukishima rolled his eyes and shot him a glare.

“I don’t really know what awaits me now.” he said anyway. “My world disappeared. All I knew is gone. I don’t know this Japan. Is there even a place for me here? Honestly I don’t think so.”

Kuroo and Kenma exchanged a look, then Kenma put down his own meal to speak.

“You’re free to stay with us.”

Tsukishima gazed at him, waiting for another comment. But Kenma stayed silent. Kuroo spoke shortly after.

“You could help Kenma with the repairs. I bring a lot of stuff we sometimes need to repair before selling it to the Fukurodani’s.”

“Yeah.. I could do that” Tsukishima answered pensively. “I could also help you.”

Kuroo immediately shook his head.

“Scavenging is too dangerous Tsukki.”

“It’s your job.”

“I’ve been doing it for years.”

“I can help you.”

“Oh yeah? Do you know how to rappel? Climb?”

“No but I can learn.”

“Too dangerous.”

“If you did learn, why can’t I?”

“Because it’s not some sort of special ability Tsukki. It takes years to get the right reflex.”

“OK, and do YOU know the difference between manual and automatic clutch?”

Kuroo opened his mouth to answer but he had no idea what Tsukishima was talking about. The blond didn’t bother to hide his smirk. 

“So to make it short, in my time we had two type of clutch for cars: manual and automatic. Automatic clutch had 2 versions. One of them was a manual clutch used by an IA. So the big difference between a manual clutch or automatic clutch used by IA, and a classic automatic clutch in general, is the gear, which is what gives the motor its power.”

Kuroo blinked once, twice, completely lost. Tsukishima proudly put his hands on the table. Kenma who just started eating again, listening to the two men arguing, lazily looked at Kuroo.

“He got you there.”

“This is nothing compared to all the stuff I could help you with.” Tsukishima added. “If I go with you, I could help you dig the most interesting stuff out of the ruins. That would definitely be a plus right? You could exchange them for higher prices.”

Kuroo winced and shook his head again.

“You’d be better here to help Kenma.”

“Oh please, don’t think I’ll just dig with you to pass time. My husband was in the other half of the machine you found me in. But it’s lost. If I go digging I might have a chance to find it.”

Kuroo suppressed a shiver. He had been stupid enough to imagine a futur with Tsukki and Kenma without considering Tsukki’s personal project. He was so excited to have the blond around he temporarily forgot about his husband. Unable to give a proper answer, he kept his eyes low and ate in silence. Tsukishima snorted and did the same. 

After the meal, Kenma led Tsukishima to his room and prepared him a bed. 

“Don’t be too quick to judge Kuroo.” 

Tsukishima’s eyes fell on Kenma, intrigued by the sudden comment.

“Our parents were scavengers. We were raised to be ones. But it's a dangerous work. We lost them because of accidents.”

“I never assumed it was easy-”

“I know. Kuroo does too. He’s too kind and always wants to help and protect others. You're new to this world, so it makes you twice subject to its rudeness. Kuroo wants to preserve you from that.”

Tsukishima let his gaze wander to the curtains. He could see Kuroo doing the dishes between them, face closed. He felt a pinch of guilt but pushed it away. It was his choice, he had the right to ask to join the scavenger. Kenma gave him another blanket and wished him good night before going back to his workshop. Tsukishima took off his jacket and shoes and slid under the sheets. He put his glasses on the side before massaging his face. 

He stared at the ceiling for a long time. He could hear the voices of Kuroo and Kenma on the other side of the curtains, but had no strength to concentrate on what they were saying. It was odd. He had slept for 115 years, but still, he was exhausted. All the pressure, the emotions and stress, the loss of Akaashi, the discovery of the new world… They drained his strengths. He closed his eyes for a second, soothed by the distant sound of Kuroo’s voice. When he opened them again, the house was silent. He shifted in his bed and put on his glasses. He noticed the ray of sunshine breaking through the curtains. He got up and dressed quickly. He was shocked to realize that it was already morning. He didn’t remember falling asleep. The house was empty, but he discerned a clicking noise outside. He made his way to the lean-to to meet Kenma who was changing some cogs of a small farm machine. 

“Good morning Tsukishima-san.” the pudding head greeted him. 

“Good morning. You’re alone?”

“Kuroo left early this morning. You were sound asleep so we didn’t warn you.”

Tsukishima gritted his teeth. So Kuroo really planned not to take him to dig. 

“Could you give me a hand here?”

Kenma’s asking took him away from his thoughts. He approached the engine and started helping him without a word. They had just finished to put the new cog in place, when footsteps drew their attention to the road. Kuroo was jogging happily in their direction. 

“Morning Tsukki!” he said once close enough. “Did you sleep well?”

Tsukishima was still a bit upset at Kuroo so he just nodded. But then, he saw the belt, the pair of safety shoes and the bag in Kuroo’s hand. They were almost identical to the one the raven-haired was wearing. Kuroo grinned at his curious look and offered them to him. Tsukishima frowned. Kuroo took his hands and put the whole stuff in it. 

“Digging material. An old scavenger gave them to me for free because I used to help him a lot when I was younger.”

“What happened to the ‘’ _It’s too dangerous, you’re not skilful enough to come with me_ ” speach?”

The sarcasm in Tsukishima’s voice was not even hidden. Kuroo threw his head back and laughed with his whole lungs. Tsukishima pouted. He hadn’t said anything funny. If so, he was trying to piss him off. Kuroo calmed himself and with one hand on the hip, looked sympathetically at the blond.

“Little Finger told me you’re not a child and you’d behave and listen to me if I teached you to dig. So. Do you still want to come with me? Wanna be a scavenger?”

Tsukishima let his lips turn into a wry smile. 

“I won’t call you Senpai.”

“You can call me Master, I don’t mind.” Kuroo teased.

“Ew- in your dreams.”

Kuroo mimicked a shock and put a hand on his heart, the other on his mouth. 

“Woah, too soon Tsukki, we only met yesterday~” 

Tsukishima grunted exasperatedly and pushed him forward. But before they left, he turned to Kenma.

“Thanks Little Finger.”

Kenma shrugged and waved them goodbye.

“Watch after him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you liked this chapter! Let me know what you think of it and the story!


	4. Discovering the Surroundings

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the wait! Writer's block!  
> I struggled to come up with the next chapter. I want to make sure I always have the next chapter written before posting, so despite this one being ready for a while, I didn't post it sooner. 
> 
> Thanks for waiting!

Tsukishima was a fast learner. Smart, thorough, perceptive. In no time, he had understood the basics of the scavenger’s work. True to his word, he listened to Kuroo every directive when they were jumping in the void or climbing the ruins. That didn’t stop him from making snarky comments. About that, Kuroo quickly understood Tsukishima’s personality. He was a brat. That was all. He liked to rile up people. He enjoyed pushing them on the edge of tolerance. But unfortunately for him, Kuroo was also a master in that field. So their personalities were clashing, but luckily, in a good way. It soon became a game of who would first yell at the other. 

Spoiler. 

Neither of them ever raised the tone. Passing the first days, and the getting to know each other time, the other part of their personalities, the real them, revealed itself. Long gone Tsukishima’s polite behavior and Kuroo’s careful manners. They were still that of course, but in no time they settled into a comfortable relation of teasing and making fun of each other. 

Still, when it was important to be careful, Tsukishima was vigilant and listened to Kuroo. Like he said he would, he helped Kuroo to be more specific with his digging. He was efficient in the search. For each object he advised to take, he explained their value to Kuroo. Tsukishima also realized that under the apparent stupidity of the raven-haired man, he was in fact super smart. He was curious, far more than the blond, and had an impressive memory. And he was excellent at bargaining. He had impressed Tsukishima more than once with his ease to change anyone’s mind. An old guy remaining unyielding? A smile, a few good points on the matter, smooth talk, and the guy had changed his mind. A vegetable seller firmed about her zucchini’s price? Kuroo had just talked to her. Literally only talk about the last ride in the ruin with her husband and son, her fields, and even about the weather, and the woman had offered them a discount. How? Why? Tsukishima was so confused. If he was alone, even with his polite manners, that would never had happen. 

Well, he was also a stranger, that didn’t help. Villagers were surprised to see him at first, but as he was always at Kuroo’s side, and Kuroo told them he was an errand scavenger he had befriended with, no one asked questions. Tsukishima was satisfied this way, but he noticed the side looks people gave him, and heard the murmurs in his back. Of course. Humanity was still the same. 

The first time Kuroo took Tsukishima to the market, Tsukishima was nervous but thought it would be a simple display with few stalls like the rest of the village. Jokes on him. The market was at the opposite side of Kuroo and Kenma’s house and definitely not what he imagined. There were indeed stalls from the villagers, with objects and food, familiar faces, but also errands merchants. And three days a week, came the Fukurodani’s men. Kuroo had explained to Tsukishima that since the Fukurodani Group lived with technologies from before the  _ Switch _ , they had rail lines to connect all villages of Tokyo Bay. With it, they could easily deliver clean water to the villages, and do the exchanges for the rice and condiments, as well as the medicines and basic raw material for living. Tsukishima often heard the villagers complain to Kuroo about the drastic control of the Fukurodani Group, but there wasn't much Kuroo could say. Tsukishima once asked him what he thought about it. Kuroo shrugged.

“I dig for them, they pay me, That’s how the world is.”

Tsukishima was surprised someone like Kuroo would content himself with this but didn’t say anything. He understood him. Kuroo’s life was simple. Digging to find objects to exchange for supplies. He was good for that. And with Tsukishima’s help, it was even better. Tsukishimas wasn’t a huge fan of digging to be honest. Some areas were worse than others. For example, they were in an ancient mall today. They had to go through narrow paths to reach a decent area of excavation. Kuroo had charged Tsukishima to check a more open zone while he would go where the walls were especially close to the floor. Tsukishima agreed, trying to hide his concern for the older man. Kuroo gave him a confident smile and slipped in the hole. Tsukishima looked as long as possible, until he only spotted the ray of Kuroo's torch, before turning on his heels to the spot he was in charge of. 

He crouched beside an old vending machine to sort out various objects scattered on the floor. They wern't trash but he wasn't sure all of them would be usefull. He was about to rise, not satisfied with his findings when his eyes were attracted by a plastic box, just there, on top of a rise of the terrain, just beside the vending machine. Carefully he climbed on it, grabbed the box and freed it from the rocks with no efforts. He opened it to discover a pile of old elementary books, notebooks and a pencil case. It was an old school box, one used to stock furniture for the juniors. He tried to take one book in his hand but the paper fell apart almost immediately. The same thing happened to all the books. Surprisingly, the notebooks were just fine, so he was able to manipulate them without risk. 

“Tsukki! You’re good to go? I’m done here!”  Kuroo’s call made him get up.

“Coming.”  He quickly put one notebook and the pencil case in his bag and climbed back to where Kuroo was waiting for him. They headed back to the surface, sometimes stopping to check some spots, and slowly, in the same pattern, the day of work passed. It was always the same. Waking up, digging, going home, sleeping. Nothing interesting for the development of the mind, which got Tsukishima on the edge. He didn't want to say it but he felt useless sometimes, and his nerves put to the test. At least he was doing something that kept him from overthinking.

He forgot about the notebook for the rest of the day, but remembered why he took it once at home, after dinner, when he was sorting his stuff on his bed. He had just got out of shower and had put on his old clothes, which became his night clothes (he didn’t like to sleep in the same clothes he had work inall day). He checked the notebook which was blank, then took a pencil and started writing characters on the scratchy pages. 

“I’m taking the bathroom.” Kenma’s tired voice announced. 

Tsukishima finished his writing to the sound of water starting to flow. He rose from his bed and went to the other room. Kuroo was nowhere in view. Tsukishima glanced at the ladder, fingers squeezing the notebook and pencil case in his hand. He looked up as his heart started to awkwardly beat faster. 

“Kuroo? Are you up there?”

“Yes. Need anything Tsukki?” 

Tsukishima played a second with the pencil case opening before answering.  “May I come up?”

“Sure.” Kuroo’s voice answered without hesitation. 

Tsukishima took a deep breath and put his foot on the first step. He had never climbed to Kuroo’s room since he had arrived. Never had too. He was quite surprised to discover a small space, just large enough for a bed. The ladder opened as a hole in the attic floor, which could be closed thanks to a wooden sheet. The slanted roof forced Tsukishima to bend in half. Kuroo was sitting on his single bed, sewing his pillow. He raised his head at Tsukishima’s approchal. 

“It’s so small.” the blond commented.

“I don’t need much.” Kuroo shrugged. 

Tsukishima sat on his heels by Kuroo’s bed, refusing to sit next to the scavenger. He watched him finishing his repair, and then ordering his bed before slightly clearing his throat. 

“For you.” 

Kuroo turned to him and watched the notebook and pencil case, curious but quickly embarrassed.

“Tsukki I don’t know how to read nor write.” he started.

“I’ve written down some useful words,” Tsukishima explained, flipping the notebook open. “As well as your name and Kozume-san’s. It’s not much, and definitely won’t ever be enough to express how thankful I am to you both but… I thought that maybe… you’d like to learn.”

Kuroo stared at the blond for a long, silent minute, before taking the notebook. Tsukishima was so uneasy since he had climbed the ladder. In this small, tight room, where his voice sounded louder, and when each movement got him closer to Kuroo, he was suddenly so nervous for no reasons. 

“Which one is my name?” Kuroo finally asked.

Tsukishima pointed it, trying to control the slight tremor in his movement. Kuroo looked at the characters, then traced them with his finger. 

“It means Kuroo Tetsurou?”

“Yes. And that’s Kozume Kenma. I wrote all steps of the writing process so you can copy the right way.”

Kuroo’s gaze was fixed on the pages, so he didn’t notice Tsukishima's small glances at him as he was talking. Suddenly, the raven-haired rose his head, beaming at Tsukishima.

“What about yours? How do I write your name?”

Tsukishima was taken aback by the question. 

“M-my name ?”  Damm. Did he just sluttered? He never slutter. Only Akaashi had made him before, and that was because his husband was a goddamn tease and pretty good at embarrassing him.

“Yeah, I want to know how to write your name too.” added Kuroo, smiling so brightly he could lit up the entire house by himself. 

Tsukishima opened the pencil case, chose a pen and took back the notebook. He settled on Kuroo’s side, still sitting on the floor, the notebook spread on the mattress. He gently started to write down his own name, slowlier than he would usually write, so Kuroo could see how he did. When he finished, he looked up at Kuroo. But he froze the moment he did. Kuroo had somehow leant to see better and was closer than they ever have. Tsukishima could feel Kuroo's hot breath on his cheekbone. Kuroo’s eyes were still absorbed by the notebook, golden reflections dancing to the light. Then, suddenly, they flicked to Tsukishima's face. 

His smile flattened. The joy in his eyes disappeared, replaced by something Tsukishima definitely didn’t want to name. His whole aura changed. He was suddenly there, so there. It wasn’t only physically anymore. All his attention was on Tsukishima. 

“You’ll have to learn how to read it too.” Tsukishima said, his voice trembling. 

Shit. Why was his voice trembling?

“You’ll have to teach me.”

With this, Kuroo slipped his hand to Tsukishima’s hoodie pocket, where he knew Tuskishima had kept his collar and ID. He took it and brought it between them.

“I want to read this.”

Tsukishima snapped the card out of Kuroo’s hold. 

“Start with this” he pushed the notebook on Kuroo’s chest. “One step at a time.”

“Alright sensei~”

Tsukishima shot him a glare at the nickname but regretted looking at Kuroo immediately. Despite the playful tone, Kuroo’s intense gaze was everything but playful. Tsukishima felt his guts tighten and a shiver ran down his neck, as he felt the well-known tension built up in his stomach. 

He rose so fast he almost knocked himself on the roof. Before Kuroo could even open his mouth he wished him goodnight and went down the ladder. He half ran to his bed and stumbled under the blanket.  It wasn’t happening. It couldn’t. He wouldn’t allow himself. 

He brought his finger, where his alliance lied, to his face and held it close. 

“Keiji…”

His broken whisper took a tear out of him. He curled onto himself, the last moment shared with Akaashi replaying behind his closed eyes. 

The following days, neither Kuroo or Tuskishima brought up what happened that night. When technically nothing happened, one couldn’t really talk about it, but in all honesty, they both had felt it. The “something” between them that night. The attraction. And Kuroo’s hesitant but insistent glances on Tsukishima, or the blond’s flustered reactions when they were close, proved to them both that it wasn’t their imagination. 

Didn’t mean it was right. Tsukishima was still a married man. Even if his marriage was 117 years old, to him, Akaashi was offering him strawberry shortcake and fucking him into oblivion not a week ago. The current situation was everything but easy, and what he started to feel for Kuroo, what he admitted was a crush, was not right. Tsukishima still hoped Akaashi could be alive. Not knowing what had happened to the other part of the cryogenics machine weighed on him. He wasn’t able to properly say goodbye to his time, to Keiji. He couldn’t mourn. 

What he learned, exactly 3 weeks after his awakening, didn’t help either. If all, it turned it all into a more complicated situation. It was a special digging day. Kuroo had dragged Tsukishima to join scavengers of the village to go to a specific localisation. The blond wasn’t really comfortable to meet up with strangers but the men were all friendly and didn’t ask any annoying questions, focused on their work. The problems came after the digging. 

They were finishing putting the engine they brought to the surface on a trolley, ready to head back to the village. Tsukishima, thanks to his height, was helping Kuroo and another guy to tie a tarp on it. 

“Fix it there.” Kuroo instructed the blond.  Tsukishima grunted. The move was a bit more tricky than he thought. He lifted himself on his toes to finish. The movement made his ID fall from the pocket he always kept it in.  He didn’t need it. It was useless in this world. But it helped Tsukishima to remember all this was real when he would wake up and wondered where he was. 

So, his ID fell on the ground and even if he noticed, he couldn't pick it up and risk screwing with the tarp. He finished his move and when he turned to grab his ID, the collar was in one of the scavenger’s hand. He was looking at it with a curious look. Tsukishima cleared his throat, just a bit annoyed.

“Sorry, that’s yours?” asked the guy.

Tsukishima nodded and reached out to take it back. The man gave him, still looking confused. T hen, his face suddenly brightened.

“I know where I saw one of this card! I saw a strange guy who wore the same!”

Tsukishima's eyes widened, and next he was grabbing the scavengers by the shoulders, desperate. 

“You saw someone with this?! Who was the guy? What did he look like?!”

Tsukishima almost yelled his question, bringing attention to them. Kuroo quickly came closer, unaware of the subject but ready to interfere.

“Hu- it was a few years back... ” the scavenger said. “I don’t remember much.”

“Try to think about it.” Tsukishima insisted.

His apparent despair forced the man to seriously try and, fingers on his chin, he deeply gave it a thought.

“It was 4 years ago.” he recalled. “Yeah, that’s right. It was when we were selling to the Fukurodani’s. A group of their collecting officers was in town. One of them was odd. He wasn’t in a uniform, but wore strange clothes. And he had this around his neck.”

“I remember him too.” added another scavenger. “ He seemed confused. Probably a new recruit.”

“Do you remember his features?!” Tsukishima insisted, his heart beating so fast he could hear it in his ears.

“Not much, he was pretty common. Black hair, normal height… I don’t remember anything peculiar about him. He went with the Fukurodani’s. That’s all.”

Tsukishima went silent, unable to ask any other question. It could be Akaashi. But it could be a lot of his colleagues. Black hair was common for japanese people. His blond hair was a weird exception. So, the man could be Akaashi, and he could not. The doubt took root in his mind and an unpleasant weight fell on his stomach.  Someone shouted something and the group started to gather their things to move back to the village. Tsukishima stayed silent, eyes fixed on his ID. Kuroo came closer and, after a hesitation, reached for Tsukishima’s hand.

“Tsukki?” 

The blond snapped out of his thoughts. He removed his hand from Kuroo’s hold without a word. Kuroo didn’t say anything, and didn't try to hold back. They followed the group of scavengers on the way to the village, to the cheering and laugh of the men. Kuroo wanted to talk, to ask Tsukishima what was on his mind, why he was frowning so hard, but he couldn't bring himself to bother the blond. He felt that if he was the one to start the conversation, it wasn’t going to go well. 

The village was in view when Tsukishima halted. Kuroo stopped as well, letting the group of scavengers move forward without them. He was about to call out for the blond when Tsukishima raised his head and planted his eyes in his.

“Did you know?”

“Know what?” asked Kuroo, confused.

“Did you know someone from my time had already woken up?

“No.” Kuroo promised. 

Actually, he clearly remembered the skeletons on the top of the hill, just before he found the blond, but they hardly could be considered like woken up. They were probably already dead when they fell from the cryogenics machine. A shiver ran down his spine at the memory. Tsukishima noticed it and his eyes narrowed into a suspicious look.

“What is it?” he asked, his face closing slightly.

“What?”  Kuroo stared at him, confused.

“What are you not telling me?”

Kuroo chewed on his lower lips, feeling uncomfortable under Tsukishima’s piercing eyes. The blond took a step forward, imposing himself in Kuroo’s personal space. They weren’t that close, but that was enough for Kuroo to feel in the weakened position. 

He took a deep breath and finally gave up. All truth have to be known in a healthy relationship. “I never really told you how I found you…” he started. 

sukishima agreed to the statement, giving a silent nod for Kuroo to go on. The raven-haired hesitated. He didn’t want Tsukishima to discover the truth about the people upon the hill. The skeletons of his possible friends or co-workers from the past. But the blond had the right to know the truth. And maybe, just maybe, it would help him to grieve and fully start his new life here, with Kuroo and Kenma. Because Kuroo knew Tsukishima’s mind was torn between his hope to find someone from his past reignited by the scavenger’s words, and his desire to adapt to this new world. 

“Kuroo?...”

Tsukishima’s voice was low, pressing but not upset. So Kuroo breathed loudly and opened his mouth.

“There were corpses in the cave. No, not corpses, skeletons. People who had died many years ago. I was scared so I didn’t exactly take a good look at them but I remember their clothes. And their collars.”

Saying this, he pointed to Tsukishima's ID, still in his hand. The blond stared at him, emotionless, for a long minute. Then he frowned. 

“Are you sure? You were scared, you might have mistaken.”

Kuroo was taken aback by Tsukishima's denial of reality.

“No Tsukki, I know what I saw. I know it’s a difficult truth but-”

“You’re wrong. They said they met a guy who had the same ID as mine.” Tsukishima cut him vividly. “I’m not the only one.”

“Even if you’re not the only one, it was 4 years ago. Yes, you might be lucky enough to find him but you can’t deny he could be the only survivor besides you.” Kuroo replied.

“Oh and that gives you the right to take my hopes away?!” 

Kuroo was taken short by the accusation. It was his turn to frown.

“I don’t… Tsukki I just told you what I saw. I care about you and I don’t want you to have false hopes. I know you’re hoping this guy, 4 years ago, was your husband but “ _Keiji_ ” could also be among the people I saw in the cave.”

At the second the words left his mouth, Kuroo regretted them. Tsukishima’s hurt look was soon hidden by anger and cold eyes.

“How dare you…” 

“Tsukki I’m-”

“Who do you think you are, Kuroo Tetsurou? Don’t talk like you know me, you know nothing about me! You don’t know me just because you woke me up and offered me hospitality!”

“I know that I’m sorry I-”

“No you’re not! You have no idea what I’m going through but you’d prefer if I could just forget about the past and live happily ever after in this fucked-up world of yours! Big news: I can’t! Everything desperately reminds me of what I lost! So if I have this one hope, even the tiniest chance, that Keiji is alive somewhere you have no right to take it away from me!”

Saying that Kuroo was startled by Tsukishima’s sudden anger was an understatement. And the blond wasn’t finished yet.

“You think you’re someone to me, but you’re wrong." Tsukishima spitted out. "You’re just a scavenger, with so little nothing that the poor freshly woken up guy from the past is his biggest attraction! And you wish it stayed the same! You're pushing your selfish desire on me without a thought about what I want! You didn’t bother to tell me about the skelet- about my people because it was convenient!”

“No!” Kuroo yelled back. “I didn’t tell you because I knew it would hurt you! I wanted to protect you!”

“I don’t need your protection! You’re nothing to me! I’m nothing to you! We’re strangers Kuroo, and don’t pretend you wanted to protect someone you don’t know! You’re not that kind! No one is!”

At that, Kuroo stayed resolutely silent. He had a lot to retort. He wanted Tsukishima to shut up and listen to him, as much as he wanted the blond to understand Kuroo’s motive. But he had no words to express the storm of thoughts raging in his head. Tsukishima took his silence for validation. Without another word, he turned on his heels and walked in the opposite direction of the village. 

He couldn’t think of anything else than the skeletons Kuroo had mentioned. What if Keiji was among them? What would he do? Would he be able to survive? No. He would rather die than live in this world without Keiji.  He felt the tears threatened to escape and strongly wiped them off. He jumped from a plateform on a ground made of rockery. He kept a quick pace and made his way between the ruins. From time to time, he had to bend over to go under a concrete wall, or crawl to leave a narrow path. By the time he finally calmed down, stopped and looked around him, the sun had started to set.

Orange and pink trails painted the sky, modeling the clouds into beautiful shapes. Tsukki found himself captivated by the view. In the silence of the ruins, he took the time to breath.His anger vanished, replaced by a guilt mixed with fear and tension. He could hear some birds singing in the distance. He had never heard birds in Tokyo. In his time, the air was too polluted for birds to nest in the area. He closed his eyes and immersed himself in the atmosphere. The light wind made the ruins echoes to the birds’ singing, and suddenly it became an orchestra. A natural symphony. The New World. 

Suddenly the waltz playing in his head was cut off by loud and heavy steps. He snapped his eyes open to the sounds. Two men were approaching. Imposing stature and nasty glares.  Tsukishima managed not to take a step back, as his heart started racing.

“Hi glasses.” greeted the shorter one. “You alone there?”

“Can’t you tell?” Tsukishima retorted, just a bit snappy.

The man snorted horribly. Tsukishima quickly checked his surroundings for a way to escape if needed. He doubted the men were going to be friendly. The one who hadn't yet talked noticed his glances. In a rather smooth movement, he took the knife from his belt and pointed it on Tsukishima.

“Don’t glasses.” said the other one. 

“What do you want?” 

“Your belt for one. And then maybe a little chat.”

Tsukishima raised a hand to his belt, hesitating. If giving it could save him he should definitely take it off without discussion, but if the guys wanted to “chat” (whatever that meant), abandoning the furniture Kuroo offered him was out of question.

“What? You don’t like yours?” he answered with an emotionless smile. “It’s very trendy I assure you.”

The shorter man had a huffed laugh before taking his own knife. In three long steps he was pushing Tsukishima against a wall, the blade on his neck.  “Would be far more with a little red on it don’t you think?” he breathed against Tsukishima’s cheek. 

The blond suppressed a shiver, determined to keep control of his emotion. 

“No” he answered.

The man forced his blade on his neck, confusion on his face.  “What?”

“You’re a poor excuse for a thief AND deaf?” Tsukishima mocked. “I said no.” 

“Fine by me, I’ll just take it from your dead body.”

Out of reflex, Tsukshima closed his eyes. So, the last thing he would see before dying would be the yellow teeth of a forty year old man. He heard the sound of body heavy fall. Suddenly, the knife disappeared from his neck. He had just the time to open his eyes to see his abuser falling on the ground.

“Are you okay Tsukki?!”

Kuroo was standing in front of him, hands shaking, holding a rock. He threw it away in order to check on Tsukishima. His warm hands were everywhere. On his face, his shoulders, light touches on his neck and chin. Tsukishima grabbed them looking at him with incomprehension and indignation. His fear was still there, but Kuroo's was so visible on his face that Tsukishima didn't care. 

“I’m fine. What have you- Are they… dead?”

He glanced at the two men lying unconscious at their feet. 

“I don’t think so…” Kuroo answered. “I only hit them.”

“People die from getting hit by a rock Kuroo!”

The raven-haired shot him a glare, full of fear.

“I had no time to think Tsukki! You ran away! I was looking for you when I spotted these two scavengers. I was just checking their path when I saw you and I didn’t take the time to think! You have no idea what they would have done to you.”

“This guy had his knife on my throat Kuroo.” Tsukishima retorted. “I’m well aware of what he could do. Don’t think I’m stupid.”

“Well you were stupid enough to provok him.” Kuroo replied. 

Tsukishima opened his mouth, but realizing he had no argument except salty childlich retort, he closed it. He did provoke the man. What was he thinking? Of course the guy would have killed him. If Kuroo hadn’t arrived in time, he would be the one lying on the floor right now. Upon realizing the danger he put himself into, his knees went weak. He grabbed Kuroo’s hand, bringing the raven-hair man’s attention to him. He tried to speak, but no word left his mouth. Nevertheless, Kuroo seemed to understand. 

“Let’s move. I don’t want to be around them when they wake up.”

Tsukishima nodded. He intertwined his fingers with Kuroo’s, just a bit more. He wanted that, needed that. Kuroo gave him a weak smile, then pulled him along. They made their way into the ruins, in silence. Kuroo was attentive to all the sounds. Tsukishima was quiet, half lost in his mind, half careful to Kuroo’s lead. Soon, the night started to spread in the sky. Kuroo clicked his tongue on his palate.

“We’re never gonna make it to the village before the night.” he said. 

Tsukishima felt a peak of guilt in his chest. It was his fault.

“This way.”  And Kuroo, his hand still holding Tsukishima’s, took another path. Soon, they entered an uneven-sized forest. Almost all the trees were taking roots on ancient buildings. They had grown in arbitrary directions, sometimes supporting each other, sometimes fighting and melting in one giant trunk. Tsukishima had seen the forest from afar, but entering it was an entire other experience. Here, untamed nature had taken a wild way to develop.

After a short walk, Kuroo stopped by a large trunk and turned to Tsukishima, taking back his hand. The blond immediately felt cold and longed for the warmth and security. 

“Stay here, I won’t be long.”

And before Tsukishima could ask what for, Kuroo started to climb the trunk. In a matter of seconds, he had disappeared in the growing darkness behind the foliage.  The silence and solitude hitted the blond hard. He kept looking at the treetop, despite the obscurity. Then, he heard a strange noise, like something coming through the twigs. Suddenly, a thick rope fell just in front of him. Kuroo’s voice reached him from the treetop. 

“Wrap it around you Tsukki. I’ll pull you up.”

Without a second hesitation, Tsukishima did as he was told. He wrapped the rope around his waist, did a solid knot, then took some slack so he could grab it with both hands.

“I’m ready.” he shouted to the treetop.

He waited, weight on his chest, heart in his throat. The first pulls lifted him slightly from the ground, before the impulses increased. In no time, the ground was 30 meters under him. He held tight on the rope and looked up. Kuroo finally appeared from the foliage. When Tsukishima was close enough, he grabbed the rope and pulled it to him. Tsukishima quickly jumped in his arms to settle on a giant twig. Kuroo dragged him nearer to the trunk and let him untie himself as he was gathering the rope. 

“Over there,” the raven-haired man said, pointing at a ladder made of rope. 

He climbed like a cat, with ease and no fear, and waited for Tsukki to join him just under a metal trapdoor. He pushed against it with all his strength, using his shoulder and neck to open it. Then he went inside this new area and Tsukishima followed, all curious.  The shelter (because that was certainly one), was a simple room, with three walls made of metal. The fourth one was some sort of half bay window. The view from there was breathtaking. Tsukishima stared at the carpet made of ruins that extended from the edge of the forest, into miles, just under the shelter. 

“I haven’t come here for years, but all seems to be in order.” Kuroo stated in his back.

Tsukishima tore his gaze from the view and looked at the room. In a corner, two foam mattresses were freshly covered by some old sheets Kuroo had taken from a metal container. Not far from the bed, what remained of a fireplace testified of an ancient cooking corner. 

“It’d be safer not to use fire or light.” Kuroo warned as locked the hatch. “I don’t know for you but I’d hate it if random scavengers surprised us in our sleep.”

Tsukishima shrugged. He wouldn’t like that either.  “What’s this place?” he asked instead.

“Just an old shelter. My dad and mom used to take me there when I was young. Some days we were so deep in the ruins that it was nightfall when we would come out. We used this place to rest before heading back to the village in the morning.”

Tsukishima only nodded at the explanations. Kuroo put his bag on the ground and fetch the poor rations he had from lunch. Nothing ideal for dinner, but they’d to be satisfied with it.  Tsukishima slowly came to sit next to him.

“Thank you for helping me.” he whispered.

“Don’t mention it Tsukki. It was nothing.”

“No Kuroo, it was not.” Tsukishima’s hand caught his wrist, forcing the raven-haired man to look him in the eyes.

“I yelled at you. I was so so angry after you. I said awful things out of frustration and fear. But you didn’t deserve any of it. You saved me the day you woke me up, you saved me by taking me under your roof, and you saved me again earlier.”

Tsukishima cut himself, feeling the emotions forming a knot in his throat. Kuroo gently took his hand and started to draw circles with his thumb.

“Tsukki listen… You were right about many things when you yelled at me. I shouldn’t have kept the truth from you. It wasn’t fair. And you’re right, I might be selfish because since you came into my life, everything felt different. Alive. It’s like I woke up at the same time as you.”

He gave a half laugh before going on.

“And I know I shouldn’t feel this way. It’s not fair to you, who lost everything. But I assure you I only intend to do good. So please, please Tsukki, let me help you. We will go look after the man of the past if you want to. We’ll look for Keiji anywhere. Just… don’t leave like that ever again.”

Tsukishima moved without thinking. He didn’t know what possessed him but one second he was listening to Kuroo, the later he was hugging him. Kuroo wrapped his arms around him and held him close. They stayed like for what seemed to be forever, clinging to each other almost desperately, before Tsukishima moved his head to look at Kuroo. He wanted to say something reassuring, but once his eyes crossed Kuroo’s, he couldn’t speak. Kuroo’s eyes flickered to his lips then back to his golden orbs. There were no whispers, no words nor warning.

It was unclear which of the two bend first, but they both jolted when they felt their lips touching. If at first Tsukishima thought Kuroo would take the lead, he was surprised by the raven-haired shyness. As Kuroo kept kissing him tentatively, gently, only pressing their lips, cute pecks, that drove Tsukishima insane, needy. He quickly asked for more. Without letting Kuroo the chance to pull away, he grabbed his face with both hands and deepened the kiss. Kuroo granted him the access to his mouth with a soft moan. Tsukishima lifted himself and swung one leg over the man so he could sit on his lap.    
Kuroo exhaled a sharp breath at the move. He seemed unable to decide what to do with his hands, sliding them on Tsukishima’s thighs first, then letting them rest on the lower part of his back, not entirely confident in grabbing the blond firmly. As the kiss kept going on, and Tsukishima rolled his hips against Kuroo’s pelvis, Kuroo started to gain confidence. 

With each new roll of hips, Tsukishima’s mouth let out hot moans. One of Kuroo’s hands found its way to his neck while the other went lower, to cup Tsukishima’s ass. The blond kissed him harder, rolling his hips and mixing their moans. He let go of Kuroo’s face and without parting their lips, led his hands to the hem of his pants. Suddenly, Kuroo broke the kiss and grabbed the hands to prevent them from going further. Tsukishima straightened at the move.

“Tsukki we-... we shouldn’t. I don’t- We can’t.”

The words hitted Tsukishima like a cold shower. He froze, terrified to move and put distance between them, as much as he was terrified to admit he wanted more. He blamed himself for kissing Kuroo, and more than that, for liking it and wanting to do more with the raven-head. Confused, he finally moved to sit by Kuroo, face burning with shame. Kuroo’s silence didn’t help.

“Kuroo I… sorry I shouldn’t have done this.”

Kuroo clenched his fists. He knew Tsukishima would regret this. It had taken all his mental abilities to stop before they went past the point of no return. He wanted Tsukishima, that was obvious. However, he feared that the blond might be confused by the strong emotions he had because of his new environment, and that he wasn’t thinking straight. 

“Don’t worry.” he said. “I understand I… I’m no one to you. I shouldn’t have… You have Akaashi and I’m just a scavenger.”

"No Kuroo it's not true-..."

"No, no, it's fine don't worry."  Kuroo shot him an apologetic smile. 

Tsukishima felt it again. This piercing pain, the clenching of his heart. He was in love with Akaashi, and had no doubt about it. He loved him to the moon and back. His husband was his first love, his dearest friend, his supporter, his home and his everything. He wanted to find him. He wanted to be reunited with him. He had this hope that Akaashi had survived the time warp.  But as much as he wanted to believe he could be reunited with his husband, he knew, deep down, that he shouldn’t have too much hope. Because Akaashi was maybe dead. 

He let out a shaky breath, overwhelmed by all his thoughts. He felt Kuroo stiffened by his side.  Sweet and kind Kuroo. A man Tsukishima had just met. Tsukishima was never the kind of guy to give his trust so easily, but somehow, Kuroo had managed to overcome his barriers in a record time. Maybe because he was the one who woke him up, and the one who took care of him with no considerations. So, it didn’t surprise Tsukishima when he realized he didn’t only have a crush on Kuroo, but kind of loved him. He stayed still, composed of marble and granite as he processed the new realization. 

The worse? He couldn’t find the force to blame Kuroo or himself for that. Was this cheating on Akaashi? Yes, probably. Did that idea hurt him? Yes, definitely. He had no intention to cheat on his husband, but he wasn’t one to lie to himself. So, he took a deep breath and tangled his fingers together.

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have forced you Kuroo.”

“You didn’t force me Tsukki.” Kuroo retorted, taken aback.

“But I was being cruel to you. Even so I complained so much, and I’m looking for Keiji, I kissed you. If you hadn’t pushed me away I wouldn’t have stopped. Once more you’ve been thoughtful.”

Kuroo’s cheek burned with embarrassment. He rubbed his neck nervously avoiding looking at Tsukishima.

“To be honest Tsukki I didn’t do it for you.”

Tsukishima raised his head at the answer, confused. So Kuroo didn’t want him? He felt so stupid.

“Sorry I assumed… you answered my kiss so I… Oh my god I’m an idiot.” 

Kuroo quickly waved his hand in front of him.

“What? No! No, no, no, it’s not you Tsukki! I’m really into you! If I could, I would have you but-”

He bit his lower lips, his ears now red too. Tsukishima frowned, more and more confused.

“Now that you mention it, yes, I’m not comfortable knowing you might have a chance to find your husband but really, it wasn’t because I don’t want you. Damm, have you looked at yourself? You’re the most beautiful being I’ve ever seen. And you’re smart, and funny with all the salt you display. You’re also so brave, facing this whole situation like a walk in a park.”

Deep red color spread on Tsukishima’s cheeks. He half hid behind his hand, trying to compose himself a cold expression, but failing miserably. The same way Akaashi’s praises and compliment always had strike right in Tsukishima’s ego and heart, Kuroo’s word found their way straight to the blond.

“Why did you push me away then?”  Tsukishima couldn’t keep himself from asking. Kuroo stayed silent for a second before hiding behind his hands. Tsukishima was really surprised by the raven-haired demeanors. 

“ImaviriginIveneverhadsex.” 

Tsukishima blinked. He wasn’t sure he had heard right.

“Be quicker I’m not sure I get it all” he said sarcastically.

Kuroo stared at him like a kicked puppy.

“I”m a vi-virgin.” he stuttered. “I’ve never h-had s-s-se-sex.”

He mentally cursed the blond who was just staring at him. Tsukishima stayed silent, just looking at Kuroo before bursting into a laugh. Kuroo’s eyes widened at the sight. Angelic sight. But haa... so Tsukishima had heard him right the first time. 

“Don’t make fun of me Tsukki.” Kuroo faked a pout and grinned.

He was so happy he had made Tsukishima laugh. It didn’t matter if it was to make fool of himself. The blond finally took back control of his emotions. He took Kuroo’s hand and squeezed it gently.

“I’m not making fun of you. I was surprised, that's all.”

“It’s just… I’ve never known any woman or man. And with the years, I just stopped being interested in the whole relation-ship thing.” Kuroo explained with a shrug.

“So, am I your first kiss?” Tsukishima teased.

“Will you take pride in it if I say yes?”

“Only if you liked it. Did you like it?” Tsukishima asked, unsure.

Kuroo gave him a smug grin.  “You weren’t half bad. ” 

Tsukishima raised an eyebrow before leaning and brushing Kuroo’s lips with his. 

“How would you know if you’ve never kissed anyone before?”

Without losing his new found confidence, Kuroo put a finger under Tsukishima’s chin to genty force him to bend his head, making himself just a bit taller than the blond.

“You’re right that’s very new to me. Maybe I should try it again before giving a real thought about it.”

He paused. His features saddened, and he drew back a little. 

“But we shouldn’t. Your husband…” 

Tsukishima looked down, feeling as bad as Kuroo. 

“I’m... I can’t explain it. I’m still very in love with Keiji, but I do like you. In other circumstances I would have just ignored my feelings for you. I would have buried them and did my best to forget them.”

The idea broke Kuroo’s heart. 

“I’m not sure if I can move on, as long as I don’t know if Akaashi is still alive or gone forever. And if he’s dea-”

Tsukishima cut himself and closed his eyes. He couldn’t bring himself to say this outloud. Kuroo seemed to get it and squeezed his hand. Tsukishima opened his eyes to meet Kuroo’s kind gaze. 

“If I don’t find him, I don’t know how long it will take me to grieve him. Or if I’ll ever be able to.”

Kuroo got closer, pressing their foreheads together, in a comforting move.Kuroo was about to propose they stayed friends and forget about what happened, but it seemed like it wasn’t Tsukishima’s plan.

“Will you be patient with me Kuroo?” Tsukishima asked. 

Surprised, Kuroo didn’t stay taken aback very long and quickly smiled.

“I’ll wait forever if you ask.”

“Ew. So sappy.”

Kuroo gave a cheerful laugh, happier than ever.

“Say the guy who’s ready to move heaven and earth in order to find his long gone lover.”

Tsukishima poked him not so gently in the side. Kuroo laughed harder. Then, the blond straightened. He looked so vulnerable suddenly, his finger fidgeting nervously.

“What if we find Keiji? What will become of us?” he asked.

“We’ll see about it when we get there. But know that I’ll never force you to choose between your husband and me.” Kuroo promised.

Tsukishima nodded. Somehow, that made him feel a lot better. He gently rubbed his nose against the crook of Kuroo’s neck. They kissed again, softly, lovingly. The stress and emotions of the day finally catched them back and they fell asleep, limbs tangled, faces close. That night, for the first time, Tsukishima wasn’t assaulted by the memory of Akaashi’s crying face, and when he woke up with the sunlight, he knew exactly where he was. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I finally got over my writer's block, I reorganized my story so they will be two more chapters. Hope you still like it and will appreciate the next chapters! 
> 
> See you soon!


	5. Meeting You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was really difficult to write, and I'm still not sure of its quality. I worked on it a bit more and I hope it ends up being ok.

To say Kenma was mad at them was an understatement. He was literally out of his mind. When Kuroo and Tsukishima hadn’t come home last night, he kept waiting for them despite his exhaustion. They had found him wrapped up in a heavy blanket, sitting at the kitchen table. Kuroo had never seen or heard Kenma yelled like that. He was always so quiet that the second he started to raise his voice at them, both Kuroo and Tsukishima froze and listened to him, ashamed. 

Kuroo had explained what had happened but it only gave more reasons for Kenma to yell. Tsukishima wasn’t left aside, and the anger and stress of the shorter man wiped both of them. After that, he instructed them to go wash themselves and prepare breakfast while he would catch a bit of sleep. Like two kids who have just been scolded by their parents, Tsukishima and Kuroo rushed to do as they were told. 

If their hands brushed when Kuroo exited the bathroom to let Tsukishima go take a bath, neither of them made a big deal about it. And, if Kenma noticed their sappy smiles and tender looks during the breakfast, he kept it to himself. The days went like this after this. Small touches, lights caresses, stolen kisses and sweet words whispered.

In the blink of an eye, a week passed, and the new market day came. Tsukishima went to the market a few times since his awakening, but usually, once the stall was ready, Kenma and him would go home and let Kuroo handle the sale. But today was different. Because Kenma didn’t want them to be separated again, so the three of them were going to attend the market. 

They woke up earlier than usual to prepare the merchandise, especially the big machines. 

A couple of villagers came to help them bring the whole stock to the market area where Kuroo settled their stall in a nice location. The sky wasn’t entirely deprived of the night’s sheets, but the market was already full of life. Villagers had set up around, spreading stalls of different sizes. Some were scavengers like Kuroo, some were farmers. There were strangers too, selling a lot of various objects. Tsukishima immediately noticed the stall with books not so far from them. He probably will go check them at some point during the day.

“Tsukki, can you help Kenma with the boxes please?”

Kuroo’s voice teared the blond out of his daydreaming. He quickly turned on his heels and made his way to the shorter man to give him a hand. They were unpacking the last box when the first echo of the Fukurodani’s train reached them. 

It first appeared in the distance as a white trail, like clouds. Then, the sound of machines became louder and louder, until the locomotive’s head appeared. Soon enough, the silhouette of the wagons followed. The train was an odd mix of those old models which were travelling during the early years of the 20th century, and something new, futuristic in Tsukishima’s eyes. He watched it’s arrival with curiosity. Some villagers and travellers had made their way to greet the first persons to exit the train. 

The Fukurodani’s men were all dressed the same. Their black military jumpsuits were tucked in large boots. A white one shoulder cropped t-shirt covered their right arm, with Fukurodani’s patch and another badge for the ranking. A sleeveless cloak with a hood completed the outfit, as well as a black mask covering half of their faces. Some wore the hood and the mask, so all their faces were hidden, and others were just wearing the mask. It didn’t seem like a strict dress code to wear both. Or none. 

Like the next man who exited the train. He immediately catched Tsukishima’s attention. He wore the same outfit as the others, except for the hood and the mask. That’s probably why he suddenly appeared really distinctly among all the Fukurodani’s men. He was solidly built. Like hell beefy. His clothes did very little to hide his powerful muscles and his impressive silhouette. But it wasn’t too much. It was like a perfectly balanced sculpture. A greek one. From the books Tsukishima had studied at Akaashi’s place. 

The greek like man had grey hair with black stands, curled into a spike on the top of his head. Even as far as Tsukishima was from him, he could hear the sound of his joyful voice as the guy addressed the other men. It was clear he was an officer, by the way he stood in the middle of the agitation and moved his hands to point at things. He was also followed by two guys, a brunette and a smaller red-hair. They were almost as loud as the other man, if not worse. 

Tsukishima was distantly looking at them, when his eyes locked with the officer. Golden orbs met golden orbs. Tsukishima suppressed a shiver and averted his eyes. He busied himself by replacing stuff on the stall to avoid looking at the grey haired man again (who looked more like an owl now that he had seen his face clearly). His peace was soon interrupted by the loud voices of men approaching. 

“Hey glasses! What’s your name?”

Tsukishima frowned. He hoped the question wasn’t for him. Nevertheless, he turned around and met the golden eyes once more. Up close, he was taller than the grey haired man. That was a given, but the difference didn’t make Tsukishima feel better. The stranger had this impressive aura and those piercing eyes that made Tsukishima feel small. 

“So? What’s your name?” the man repeated at Tsukishima’s silence.

“What’s yours?” Kuroo retorted, approaching with a smug grin. 

The stranger stared at him, open mouth for a minute, giving Kuroo plenty of time to add another snarky remark.

“If I were you, I would never start to flirt with such a poor question.”

“Fli-flirting?! I wasn’t flirting!” the man said, pink spreading on his cheeks.

“Oya, my bad~ I got the wrong impression. I should have known, it would be the worst pick-up line ever after all.” Kuroo added.

The stranger stared at him completely stunned. Kuroo knew better than to be disrespectful at a Fukurodani officer, but he didn’t want Tsukishima to be in an uncomfortable position. He discreetly gestured to the blond to move away, and opened his mouth to politely say goodbye. But he didn’t take into account the grey-haired man himself.

“I’m Bokuto Koutarou, Fukurodani 4th squad Captain.” he said ceremonially.

Kuroo winced at the title. A captain. Lucky him. What a day to offense a captain. Bokuto was looking right at him, waiting for Kuroo to introduce himself in return. After a long, pretty awkward, silent minute, Kuroo gave in and bow respectfully.

“Kuroo Tetsurou.”

Bokuto cheered happily, breaking the tension, before turning to Tsukishima, expectantly, with a bright smile. The blond understood he had no choice.

“Tsukishima Kei.” 

Bokuto’s eyes widened and the second after he was grabbing Tsukishima by both arms and cheering even more.

“Kei! You’re Kei!”

The blond winced at the touch. He promptly removed his arms and took a few steps back. Before Bokuto could catch him again, Kuroo stepped between them.

“Hands off Captain. These are no manners.”

“Ha sorry, I’m just so happy I-”

Bokuto cut himself when he felt Kuroo’s hand blocking him, keeping him from coming closer. He looked at Kuroo, then Tsukki, before looking back and forth between Kuroo and the hand on his shoulder. 

“We surely don’t share your.. happiness Captain” Kuroo said with a cold tone.

“Hey! Don’t touch the Captain!” the red-hair shorty yelled .

“It’s OK Hinata,” Bokuto assured with a gentle smile. 

But he didn’t move at all. The little commotion had started to attract attention to them. Kenma had stopped whatever he was doing and came closer with a concerned look. Tsukishima wanted to tell Kuroo to stop, and prevent a scene, but he wasn’t sure he wanted the Fukurodani Captain to take that as an invitation to talk to him again. 

“Hands off our Captain scavenger.” warned the brunette behind Bokuto. 

“If your captain kindly steps back, I’ll gladly take back my hand, and we can both go our separate ways.” Kuroo answered, looking straight into the officer’s eyes.

Bokuto gently grabbed Kuroo by the wrist. 

“I can’t do that,” he said. “You’ve no idea what you’re interfering into.”

“I’m pretty sure I’m preventing my friend from being molested by a stranger.” 

Bokuto shook his head with a chuckle. Then suddenly, his grip on Kuroo tightened and next thing the scavenger knew, was that his face harshly met the ground. He didn’t let Bokuto the chance to take advantage of his weakened position and jumped right back on his feet. 

He wasn’t a fighter. He had never learned how to aim for a specific part of the body, or how to disorient his opponent. But he had fought to survive many times. He knew how to punch, and he had a good kick. He ignored Kenma and Tsukishima’s worried shout, and even his own warning in the back of his mind telling him it was a bad idea to fight back. 

The first punches got Bokuto by surprise, even if they didn’t touch him. He dodged them skillfully, but lost ground to Kuroo in a second. He felt excitation took over him, and the next time he landed on his right foot, he put all his weight on it in order to take the next hit and catch Kuroo. Well, Kuroo had other ideas. Taking advantage of adrenalin, he suddenly used Bokuto arms as leverage and jumped on his shoulders. His thighs circled Bokuto’s neck like a snake wrapped its prey. He swang once, twice, around Bokuto’s head, using the weight of his body to add speed and strength, before he blocked the captain’s head between his thighs and threw himself to the ground. 

Swept away, Bokuto caught up by planting both palms firmly on the ground. In a second, he had reversed their position and Kuroo was the one lying on the floor. He winced in pain. His body was still hurt by his fall, the day he had found Tsukishima. He never truly healed, and when he was pushing himself too much, his back and side were hurting like hell.

Bokuto pushed back the folds of his coat, ready for Kuroo's next move. The raven-haired was already on his feet, ignoring his pain, ready to jump again. His honey eyes were shining with determination. He took a step forward. A shot tore in the air and suddenly, Kuroo was falling. 

A primal scream threatened to escape Tsukishima’s mouth when the body hit the floor. He was at Kuroo’s side in an instant, Kenma with him, his usually stoic face distorted in horror. Bokuto turned immediately to his men, pure anger replacing the previous amusement on his face.

“Who gave you the order to shoot!?”

“S-sorry Captain!”

Hinata held his gun in the air and pointed the charger.

“It’s anaesthetic!”

Bokuto’s feature softened right away. He turned back to Kuroo and kneeled by his friend’s side. Tsukishima held the unconscious man closer, in a protective move. Kenma was throwing knives with his eyes. He was almost growling. 

“He’s just unconscious.” Bokuto assured.

“We noticed.” Tsukishima hissed.

Bokuto raised his hands in front of him, in a peace sign. 

“It shouldn’t have happened, my fault, I’m sorry. I just wanted to talk to you.”

“Could have said that from the start, instead of getting into a fight with Kuroo.” the blond snapped. “Now, I’m not sure I want to listen to whatever you have to say.”

“You will.” Bokuto said.

He reached his neck with one hand, and searched a second under the layers of clothes, before showing the chain hanging around his neck. A golden ring shone at the end of it. Tsukki’s eyes widened and his face turned pale. With a trembling hand he touched the alliance.

“Whe-where did you get that?” he asked, voice trembling. 

“He gave it to me.” Bokuto answered.

He didn’t need to clarify who “he” was. Tsukishima brought his hand to his mouth to prevent himself from letting out an ugly sob. His heart started racing. He felt the emotions hit hard. He wasn’t able to give a proper answer. So many ideas stumbled in his head right now. He couldn’t think straight. His grip on Kuroo tightened. He didn't know what to do. 

Bokuto seemed to understand the turmoil of doubts raging in Tsukishima because his next move was to turn to Hinata and his companion. 

“Buy all this.” he said.

Hinata and the other man looked at each other before staring at Kuroo and Kenma’s stall. 

“All?” 

“All Kageyama. And make sure everything gets on the train before we leave in 10 minutes.”

Then he kneeled again and made a move toward Kuroo. Immediately, Kenma threw a protective arm in front of Kuroo and Tsukishima. Bokuto eyed him respectfully.

“I’m not gonna hurt them.” he promised.

“I was under the opposite impression.” Kenma snapped.

“It’s OK Kozume-san.”    
Kenma gave Tsukki a weird look. The blond answered by a silent nod. Kenma lowered his arm but stayed between Bokuto and his friends. Tsukishima took a deep breath, before looking right in Bokuto’s eyes. 

“What do you want?”

“I want you to come with me. And I’m taking your friend with me too. He’ll need special treatment after he woke up to make sure he’s fine.”

“You’re not taking Kuroo anywhere. Neither Tsukishima.”

“You’re welcome to follow.” Bokuto offered to Kenma. 

Kenma seemed reluctant. He didn’t trust this officer a bit, and one couldn’t blame him. As much as Kuroo had been reckless, Bokuto was the one who started the fight. However, he had noticed Tsukishima’s confusion at the sight of the ring, which meant something obviously. And Bokuto had said Kuroo would be well treated. So, with one last warning look, he moved a little to the side as a sign for Bokuto to move on. The officer got it and leaned over Kuroo. He settled him in his arms and rose, carrying the unconscious scavenger bridal style. 

Tsukishima and Kenma fell immediately in his steps and followed him to the train, while Hinata and Kageyama were overseeing the men charged to take all the stall. When Bokuto got into the train, Tsukishima heard him ordering a man to prepare for departure. The officer led them into a cosy wagon and laid Kuroo on a bench. Tsukishima sat by him and gently put Kuroo’s head on his lap, ignoring Bokuto's curious look. Kenma sat in front of them and brought his legs against his chest. 

“We’ll move soon.” Bokuto warned before leaving the wagon. 

Tsukishima stared at the floor a long minute after that.

“What’s wrong?” 

Kenma’s question made him wince. “Nothing.”

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost since he showed you his necklace.” 

Tsukishima avoided Kenma’s intense look. He nervously intertwined his fingers with Kuroo’s.

“They bought absolutely all our stuff.” Kenma added. “And they shot Kuroo.”

“I know.”

“I think I have the right to understand what’s going on.”

Tsukishima let out a shaky breath. Kenma was right.

“He wears Keiji’s alliance.”

The blond showed his own ring to Kenma and the pudding head didn’t need more explanation. 

“You think your husband might be with the Fukurodani?”

“I… I don’t know. Ever since I learned someone from the past like me had woken up four years ago, I’m hoping it's him. But I don’t want to have false expectations. This ring… it might be a coincidence.”

“No.” Kenma shook his head. “No it’s not, and you don’t believe it could be.”

Tsukishima stayed silent, but Kenma knew he was right. A sudden jolt cut the conversation and slowly, the train started to move. Soon after, Bokuto, Hinata and Kageyama appeared and settled in the bench next to theirs. They were talking business and all, but Tsukishima didn’t miss Bokuto’s concerned look on him. 

The train started to speed up, and quickly, Kuroo and Kenma’s village disappeared. The ruins faded for plains and forests. Tsukishima stared out of the window, drowning in the new landscape. He was so lost. He couldn’t settle on one track of thought without being teared away by another. He was terrified. He was concerned for Kuroo. He was stressed by Bokuto. He hoped the end of this journey would lead him to his husband. 

After a while, he felt Kuroo move on his lap. The raven-haired man opened his eyes and blinked a few times. A grin spread on his lips the minute he realised he was resting on Tsukishima’s lap.

“Hello angel.”

Tsukishima frowned at the nickname. Kuroo slowly took his time to wake up all his body, feeling a little disoriented. Tsukishima immediately stopped him when he tried to rise. Kenma leant too to help him if needed.

“Don’t force yourself. You’ve been knocked out for a while.”

Kuroo breathed deeply. “I’m fine,” he assured for his friend and Tsukishima, forcing himself into a sitting position despite the sting of pain in his back. His move brought the attention of Bokuto on them. 

“You’re awake!”

Kuroo winced at the sound level of the officer’s voice. Bokuto quickly got up and approached in order to check on him. Kenma shot him a cold glare before he even reached Kuroo. 

“What happened?” the raven haired ask.

“Hinata over here shot you with anaesthetic.” Bokuto explained, pointing at the red-head behind. 

“Sorry sir. Didn’t mean no harm.”

“You shot him idiot, how could you not mean no harm!?” Kageyama pointed with a harsh tone.

“Sh-shut up Bakayama!” 

Tsukishima ignored the two officers and helped Kuroo sit. He kept a protective hand on his lower back and looked intently at his face.

“If I didn’t know you better, I’d say you’re worried about me Tsukki.” Kuroo teased with a smirk.

“I had no reason to be. You brought it upon yourself, deal with the consequences.” answered the blond, a bored expression plastered on his face. Kuroo chuckled and let himself lay against him. He closed his eyes and put his head on Tsukishima’s shoulder. 

“And I was starting to think I mattered to you.”

“Don’t overestimate yourself rooster head.”

“Don’t blame me glasses. You sent me contradictory signals.”

Tsukishima stifled a sneer. Before he could say something, Kenma interrupted them.

“Could you please stop flirting, it’s annoying. We’re in public.”

Tsukishima suddenly felt very aware of Bokuto’s presence, and his attention felt so wrong. He was looking at them with interest. His eyes had slowed over their intertwined fingers, and how Kuroo was drawing circles with his thumb over Tsukishima’s hand. 

“If you never cared about me, then you’re good at pretending Tsukki.” Kuroo murmured, bringing back the blond’s attention to him. 

“If I was good at pretending I would pretend I like you.”

At that, Kuroo sat up like a spring toy. 

“Did I hear you like me?”

“No, I’m just good at pretending.” Tsukishima denied.

Kuroo had none of it. He threw his arms over Tsukishima and held him tight against him, ignoring his grumbling and protests. 

“Seems like you’re alright.” Bokuto said happily.   
Kuroo turned to him and scratched the back of his neck.

“Yeah.. sorry for the trouble.”

He looked around them, and he started to frown as he realized they were on a train. Anticipating his questions, Bokuto smiled brightly at him and patted his shoulder.

“We’re heading to Fukurodani. I want to make sure you get examined. I wouldn’t want you to suffer any side effects.”

“Thanks but you shouldn’t have... it was my fault for getting into a fight with you.”

“Man I’m the one who attacked you!” Bokuto exclaimed. “That's the least I can do! Also your move back there? Around my head? It was nuts!”

“Thanks Captain.” the scavenger laughed.

“Bokuto. Call me Bokuto.” with that he offered his hand to Kuroo.

The scavenger light-heartedly took it. “Thanks Bokuto.”

Kuroo offered a weak smile and bow politely. Tsukishima frowned as he thought he noticed slight red spreading on Bokuto’s cheeks. The captain didn’t let anything appear and the blond quickly forgot about his impression. He turned to Kuroo and took a deep breath before adding a bit more information, taking the chance to ask directly to Bokuto.

“Bokuto-san, who gave you the ring?”

The captain gave him a long look before he answered, “Akaashi entrusted me with his ring.” 

Tsukishima felt a wave of emotions submerged in him. Relief. Happyness. Fear. Anxiety. His grip on Kuroo loosened. The scavenger on the contrary, tightened his grip. He added his other hand and squeezed Tsukishima’s. When the blond met his gaze, Kuroo’s eyes were confident and were talking. He wouldn’t let Tsukishima face this alone. If the blond needed him, he would be there. 

“Since I met him, he told me about you.” Bokuto added, bringing attention back to him. “He told me about his Kei, his husband who he loved more than anything, and what had happened.”

“When-... When did you meet him?” Tsukishima found the strength to ask.

“4 years ago, when he woke up. I was the one who reactivated his cryopreservation cabin. After that, he settled in Fukurodani, and he has been working there ever since. And also looking for you.”

“Looking for me?”

“You didn’t think he would have given up on you, did you?” Bokuto chuckled. 

Tsukishima couldn’t suppress a relieved sigh. Kuroo gave him a kind side look. He was so, so happy for the blond, and at the same time, a bit scared, but he didn’t know that yet. Still, he started to retract his hand. This time it was the other’s turn to hold on him. The scavenger gave Tsukishima an odd look but didn’t try to move anymore. Bokuto noticed this obviously, however, he had the tact not to mention it. 

“It’s because he told me so much about you that I recognized you right away. Tall, blond, beautiful”

Tsukishima frowned a bit at the compliment, blush on his cheeks despite his best effort. He wasn’t one to give in compliments but the way Bokuto had said it was so natural and honest he couldn’t help feeling shy. 

Bokuto didn’t seem to notice his confusion and kept talking. “You had to be his Kei. But sorry again, I was so excited I didn’t approach you right.”

Tsukishima shrugged and shook his head. “It’s fine.”

“We should arrive in less than a hour. I hope you’re cosy enough. Do you need anything?”

“We’re good,” Kuroo assured. 

Bokuto looked a bit disappointed but nodded. After that, he sat not far from them and started chatting with Kuroo like they were old friends. Bokuto was, in fact, a good fellow. He had this sweet personality, quite simple but endearing and contagious. Unsurprisingly, past the first impression, Kuroo got along with him almost immediately. Tsukishima listened distractly, answering once or twice when needed, but mostly lost in his thoughts. Only Kuroo’s constant drawings on his hand kept him rooted in the present. In front of them, Kenma had somehow started to talk with the red-hair officer, Hinata (or more, Hinata was talking and Kenma was listening). 

The rest of the ride went in a blur for Tsukishima, the chit-chat and laughters giving some sort of rhythm. At some point, he stared at Bokuto’s neck, just where his collar started to hide his skin. He could guess where the chain holding Akaashi’s ring was hanging. He wanted to ask about it, but he was afraid. Somehow, despite Bokuto’s words, he feared the why. 

Why was Bokuto wearing his husband’s alliance? The more he thought about it, the more he felt uncomfortable about the possible answer. And slowly, he became too aware of his proximity with Kuroo. Bokuto knew who he was to Keiji. Despite his best efforts to ignore it, a weighing guilt rooted in his chest. Finally, the reassuring heat Kuroo radiated felt wrong, and Tsukishima took back his hand. He had shown too much affection to the scavenger already, and this being abnormal in itself for him, it was worsened by the fact that Bokuto had seen too much. He feared what the captain would say to Akaashi. 

Kuroo surely felt a pinch of pain at this move but didn’t oppose. He understood. He knew this would happen at some point. He just didn’t think he would be so quick. Tsukishima slid on the bench to the window and kept pressed against it for the rest of the ride.

Long before the city appeared, the desert slowly disappeared in favor of farms and fields. The farms of Fukurodani extended on miles and miles. Then, the first dwellings became more and more numerous. Finally the train went beyond the first crown of habitation, to reach the center of the city. There the Fukurodani station was a pile of rock and metal, blocks and pipes. It rose towards the sky like a tree trying to reach the sun. Tsukishima thought it quite looked like an old Tokyo district from his time. On the opposite, Kuroo and Kenma had never seen anything similar and were absolutely amazed. Frightened and amazed. 

Once the train had stopped, Bokuto exited the wagon first, followed closely by Hinata and Kageyama. Kuroo, Kenma and Tsukishima came off the train into a lively and loud platform. Bokuto was already talking to a few men, all faces hidden by their hood and masks.

Tsukishima felt his heart drop in his stomach. He was so close to Akaashi. He let out a shaky breath. He touched his ring, a silent prayer on his lips. Beside him, Kuroo noticed his anxiety. He tentatively reached his hand, a small encouraging smile on his lips. Tsukishima didn’t move and let him take his hand. He felt comfort in this simple action. Kuroo’s smile grew wider, relieved that Tsukishima didn’t push him away. He silently supported him, all pep talk going through his eyes. They’re silent exchange was soon interrupted by Bokuto’s return. The captain stood in front of them, hand on his hips. Beside him were Hinata and a new guy face hidden, as Kageyama was going back on the train. 

“Hinata, take Kuroo to the infirmary. I want him to be checked up from head to toe.”

“Aye sir!” Hinata straightened and gave a short salute. 

Then Bokuto turned to Tsukishima. “Akaashi is waiting in my office.”

Tsukishima shivered. His racing heart was going through a roller coaster right now.

“Want me to come with you?” Kuroo asked.

Tsukishima shook his head, blond fangs dancing on his forehead.

“Go to the infirmary. I’ll be fine.”

He locked eyes with the raven-haired man and read fear, insecurity and concern in the honey orbes. His heart ached at this view. He didn’t want Kuroo to be sad or feel no longer wanted. So, braving his own demons and resistance, he leant and pressed a soft kiss on Kuroo’s cheek. He quickly backed off and took a step forward Bokuto.

“Let’s go.”

Kuroo stared at his back, stuned, but not missing the red that had spread on his ears. An idiotic smile on his lips, he followed Hinata. 

**.**

Tsukishima tried to calm his drumming heart as he fell in steps of Bokuto and his partner. He was so nervous he didn’t look up the whole way to Bokuto’s office. It was only when the captain stopped and called out his name that he noticed they had arrived in front of a double wooden door. A single nameplate bearing the title “ _ 4th Division headquarters. Captain Bokuto _ ” was plastered in the middle of the left one. 

Bokuto opened the door and invited Tsukishima to enter first. The blond took a deep breath before passing the doors. Bokuto’s office wasn’t ostentatious in contrast with his owner. It was a square room, with a simple desk at the back. On the left a couch was pushed against the farthest wall, and his twin was right on the opposite. The two were separated by a coffee table in tempered glass wood. The long bay window was high on the wall, and let in a soft light. Beside the main desk on the right, the wall was covered with a long bookshelf. Tsukishima quickly looked around, then turned to Bokuto. 

“Where is he ?”

The captain was about to answer, but his partner took a step forward and took off his hood and mask. Akaashi was as beautiful as the last time they saw each other. Even more. He was four years older now, and even if he hadn’t changed much, his face was more mature. His hair was styled all the same, maybe just a bit longer. He got rid of his coat on the arm of one couch and faced Tsukki fully. He had gained muscle over the years, the tightblack shirt hiding absolutely nothing of his six pack abs and biceps perfectly shaped. Tsukishima stared at his husband, absolutely stunned by his appearance. What had been less than a month for him had been 4 years for Akaashi, that wasn’t something he could deny, but his brain had a difficult time accepting it. 

After a moment of shock, he finally made a move, first towards Akaashi, but quickly he changed his mind and folded his fingers together instead. Now facing the man he had hoped so much to find, he had no idea what to say. Should he show how happy and relieved he was? Should they talk about the accident back at the test facility, the explosions, their colleagues, and professor Takeyuki? Should he ask what had happened after he had fallen asleep? Could he kiss Akaashi? He didn’t know. 

He was standing there, looking at his husband like a fish out of water. A brief movement caught his eyes, before Bokuto approached.

“We should sit” he offered, gesturing to the couch beside them.

Tsukishima hesitated. Akaashi didn’t move either but with a simple move from the chin, instructed Bokuto to sit first. 

“Do you want something to drink?” 

It took Tsukishima a few seconds to realize Akaashi had spoken to him. He shook his head, opening his mouth to ask something. Anything. No sound passed his lips, so he slowly closed them, trying to control his frustration. 

“You look well.” Akaashi said.

“You too.” Tsukishima said back, thankful for this slow beginning. 

“When did you wake up?”

“Few weeks ago. Kuroo found me in the ruins.”

At the scavenger’s name, Akaashi winced, not subtle enough for Tsukishima to miss it. 

“What?” He cursed his tone that came out harder than he planned. 

“Nothing.” assured his husband. “He was with you just before right? The tall one on the platform.”

“Yes. He and Kozume-san took me in and helped me settle in this… era. They’ve been really good to me.”

“I won't forget to thank them for that.” Akaashi said with a small nod.    
Tsukishima wanted to ask questions in return, but couldn’t decide on which one first. As weird as it was, the man in front of him was his husband, the man he loved more than anything in the world, but at the same time, he wasn’t. Akaashi had never been the extroverted type of guy. He rarely showed vivid emotions, even less when they were in public. As much as they loved each other, they’ve always been discreet about it. So, Tsukishima hadn’t expected them to fall in the arms of the other, hot tears and sloppy kisses. However, he was unsettled by the cold demeanor of his husband. 

He averted his eyes on Bokuto who was staring at the exchange silently. Tsukishima suddenly felt a sting of jealousy in his chest. He remembered the necklace and couldn’t stop himself but clicked his tongue at Bokuto. Akaashi didn’t miss it, turning immediately to the Captain.

“Kou, could you leave us a moment?”

Bokuto nodded and jumped on his feet. He exited the room saying he was gonna get Kuroo and Kenma, leaving Tsukishima and Akaashi to their staring contest. 

“Kou?” Tsukishima was the first to speak this time.

“Koutarou was the one who woke me up. I wouldn’t be here today if it wasn’t for him.”

Tsukishima snorted, more disgusted by his own jealousy than annoyed by the affection in Akaashi’s voice when he talked about the captain. 

“He took care of me Kei.” Akaashi explained unemotionally. “Like Kuroo took care of you.”

“I’m pretty sure that wasn’t the same.” Tsukishima muttered with a fake laugh.

Akaashi frowned for the first time, showing his annoyance to the blond. “You two seemed pretty close to me on the platform.” he said coldly.

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

There was a boiling tension between them suddenly. Something that never happened before. Tsukishima steadied himself on his left leg, trying to give himself some kind of confidence.

“I thought you were dead Keiji. I thought-... I woke up a few weeks ago ALONE, with no way to know what had become of you!” He felt the sting of tears threatening to escape and had no idea how to hold back all his frustration anymore. He didn’t want to cry, not when he was so happy to see his husband, so why was he so angry at the same time? Why was he so jealous? Did he fear Akaashi had replaced him? Had he? 

“So you traded four years of relationship in a few weeks? For a scavenger?” Akaashi retorted without hesitation, his voice full of irritation as he had difficulty hiding his annoyance. 

“You gave your alliance to Bokuto! I know what such a move means, don’t fool me!” Tsukishima finally bursted out. 

“Here we are-”

“Stop. Don’t you dare patronize me Keiij. I’m not in the mood. I can’t-”

Tears flowing on his cheeks like a heavy rainstorm cut him short and he turned to the side to hide his face. He suppressed a wracking sob, trying his best to save the appearance despite the obvious weakness he let out. 

“I am dating Koutarou.” Akaashi confirmed after a silence. “I fell in love with him, and gave him my ring 5 months ago.” He stepped closer and cupped the blond’s face, his thumbs wiping away the tears. 

Tsukishima wanted to push him away, tell him not to touch him, and be mean to him, but at the moment Akaashi touched him, he couldn’t find the strength in him to do so. He involuntarily pressed his face lightly in his husband’s palm, not even satisfied by this touch. 

“I love you Kei. I’ve loved you for 8 years now. I was so scared when I woke up and discovered that the part of the machine you were in had disappeared. I was terrified you might be dead, or lost forever. I kept searching for you all these time.” Tsukishima felt more tears running down his cheeks, the sound of his sobs getting louder and louder. Akaashi brought him even closer and almost whispered his next words. 

“I told Bokuto about you. I described you to him and he helped me to look out for you. That’s why when I heard he was coming back sooner today, I had this feeling something would be different. He usually leaves for the entire day.”

Tsukishima sniffled and tried to wipe his tears but Akaashi held him strongly, not giving him the chance to escape his hold. 

“And when I saw you standing on the platform, I fell in love all over again. Jeez Kei you’re so beautiful, even more than I remembered. Can you imagine? 4 years with only the memory of you. I was turning mad.”

Blond strands brushed Akaashi’s forehead as Tsukishima shook his head.

“Are you going to d-divorce me?” He hadn’t the strength to blame himself for the weakness in his voice. Akaashi slowly forced him to look at him.

“Absolutely not. I finally found you, I’m never letting you go.”

Suddenly Bokuto didn’t matter. Kuroo was long forgotten. The new world and the  _ Switch  _ had never happened. They were together again. Tsukishima wrapped his arms around Akaashi’s shoulders and pressed his wet cheek against his. Akaashi’s arms soon found their rightful place around his husband's slim waist and he held onto him with a desperate sigh, fearing that all this could be a dream. 

The longer they stayed like this, the stronger their hold became on the other. Akaashi’s hug was the same as before, plus the new loving force he had on Tsukishima. The blond breathed deeply the perfume of his lover, finally giving in and letting out all the stress and fear he had, flowing through heavy tears. 

Slowly they moved. They stared at each other, then Akaashi started to kiss the tears one after the other, not minding Tsukishima’s groan. He kissed and kissed, covering the face he had missed all these years, showering the man he never stopped loving with affection. Was it Akaashi or Tsukishima who moved first, they couldn’t tell, and didn’t care at all, because the moment their lips met, everything felt right again. 

Tsukishima tangled his fingers in Akaashi raven’s locks with the same need the shorter male embraced him. In a second, they parted their lips and their tongues found their dancing partners with delight. Their eyes closed, all thoughts turned to the other, pushing against the other, wanting, needing, to feel the other’s heat, to connect all inches of their bodies together. 

“I love you Kei” Tsukishima heard Akaashi whisper against his lips. “Me more.” he answered, initiating a new kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tell me what you think! If I need to improve anything and if you liked the story so far :)


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